Private equity is becoming part of college sports, after several stalled attempts.

Driving the news: The University of Utah's board of trustees yesterday unanimously approved the creation of a for-profit company in partnership with Otro Capital, a New York-based firm formed in 2023 by RedBird Capital Partners alumni.

• It will be called Utah Brands & Entertainment, once the legal paperwork is completed, and will manage a variety of UU athletic operations — including media, hospitality, licensing, and finance.
• Otro is cornerstone equity investor, albeit with a minority stake, and would receive a percentage of annual revenue. Major UU donors also are expected to participate, with total investment expected to approach $500 million.

The big picture: Two trends are converging. First, private equity's growing interest in sports. Second, college sports becoming more like pro sports, thanks to NIL agreements and the transfer portal — plus an NCAA settlement that will let schools pay student-athletes.

• A lot of early talks revolved around private credit investments, or equity at the conference level. None of those have yet come to fruition.
• "College sports is big business but it needs to be a better business," a source explains. "Schools still are begging for money from donors, cutting non-revenue sports, borrowing from the states, and even considering borrowing from private equity."

Behind the scenes: Otro, which declined comment, is said to have discussed possible deals with dozens of schools and began speaking with UU more than a year ago.

• Its team has deep experience in pro sports, including the formation of Legends Hospitality, and both sides seem to view Utah Brands & Entertainment as a partnership.
• One possible reason this particular deal moved forward is that UU has just 10 trustees, thus helping to streamline negotiations.

Yes, but: There still are open questions about putting a for-profit structure on a non-profit institution, let alone one supported by taxpayers.

• Some sports investors also have questioned if private equity can materially improve college sports finances, given that the biggest revenue stream (e.g., media rights) is negotiated at the conference level.

Look ahead: Both private equity and higher ed will watch this deal very closely, to see if the model should be mimicked.

SpaceX has told investors that it's planning for a 2026 IPO, as first reported by The Information and confirmed by Axios.

Why it's the BFD: This could be the largest IPO ever, topping Saudi Aramco's $25.6 billion raise in 2019.

• SpaceX also is the world's second-most valuable unicorn company, behind just OpenAI, and provides strong tailwinds for other space startups.

Zoom in: This is a bit of a surprise.

• Elon Musk's only listed company is Tesla, and he wanted to take it private ("funding secured"). Plus, SpaceX shareholders have plenty of access to liquidity via tenders and active secondary markets.
• There also had been speculation about a Starlink spinout IPO.

Flashback: SpaceX raised its first VC round in 2008, when Founders Fund invested $20 million. It felt like a ton of money at the time, so I just searched my newsletter archives to find a contemporaneous Q&A with FF partner Luke Nosek, who's still on SpaceX's board. Check it out.

The bottom line: This is a plan, not a guarantee. Musk and the markets are both mercurial.

⚡ Fervo Energy, a Houston-based geothermal energy developer, raised $462m in Series E funding. B Capital led, joined by Google. Axios Pro previously reported that the company was seeking $300m. axios.link/4oPk5Hz

• Fal, an SF-based generative media platform, raised $140m in Series D funding at a $4.5b valuation. Sequoia Capital led, joined by Kleiner Perkins, NVentures, Alkeon Capital, a16z, Kindred Ventures, Meritech, Bessemer Venture Partners, Notable Capital, Shopify Ventures, and Salesforce Ventures. axios.link/4q0We95

🚑 SanegeneBio, an obesity and autoimmune biotech, raised $110m in Series B funding from Eli Lilly, Sino Biopharm, Invus, and Qiming Venture Partners. axios.link/4qkSkrV

• Duve, an Israeli hotel guest management platform, raised $60m in Series B funding. Susquehanna Growth Equity led, joined by insider XT Venture Capital. axios.link/4rJyLLa

• Nu Quantum, a British quantum networking startup, raised $60m in Series A funding. National Grid Partners led, joined by Gresham House Ventures, Morpheus Ventures and insiders Amadeus Capital Partners, IQ Capital, Ahren Capital, Cambridge Enterprise Ventures, East Innovate, NSSIF, and Sumitomo. axios.link/48v8itd

• Vatn Systems, a Portsmouth, R.I.-based developer of autonomous underwater vehicles for naval warfare, raised $60m in Series A funding. BVVC led, joined by Hanwha, Geodesic Capital, Airbus Ventures, Dauntless Ventures, Trousdale Ventures, Veteran Ventures Capital, DYNE Ventures, Propeller Ventures, Decisive Point Ventures, SAIC Ventures, Centre Street Partners, Cubit Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures. axios.link/4iKxnnm

• Solve Intelligence, an AI platform for patents, raised $40m in Series B funding. Visionaries and insider 20VC led, joined by YC, Thomson Reuters, and Operator Collective. solveintelligence.com

• 401Go, a Sandy, Utah-based retirement program setup platform for financial advisors, raised $33m in Series B funding. Centana Growth Partners led, joined by Next Frontier Capital, Rally Ventures, and Impression Ventures. axios.link/4a9mjOG

🚑 EpilepsyGTx, a London-based gene therapy biotech, raised $33m in Series A funding from XGEN Venture and the British Business Bank. axios.link/48Z8KA9

• Outset, an SF-based customer research and surveying platform, raised $30m in Series B funding, per Axios Pro. Radical Ventures led, joined by M12, 8VC, and future Back Ventures. axios.link/4iOGMKN

🌍 Spark Cleantech, a French developer of heavy industry decarbonization solutions, raised €30m in Series A funding from 360 Capital, Taranis, and Asterion Ventures. axios.link/4puQYdT

🚑 Inito, maker of a fertility tracker, raised $29m led by Bertelsmann India Investments and insider Fireside Ventures. axios.link/4oMrlUU

• AnySignal, an El Segundo, Calif., developer of RF platforms for aerospace and defense, raised $24m in Series A funding. Upfront Ventures led, joined by BlueYard Capital and First In Ventures. axios.link/44iIyhe

🚑 Aradigm, an NYC-based benefits platform for cell and gene therapies, raised $20m in Series A funding. Frist Cressey Ventures led, joined by a16z and Morgan Health. axios.link/48uA09D

• Safebooks, an SF-based financial data governance startup, raised $15m in seed funding. 10D, Propel Ventures, and Mensch Capital led, joined by Moneta Venture Capital, Magnolia Capital, Cerca Fund, and Blue Moon. axios.link/4pZVAZg

• Pryzm, an Arlington, Va.-based government contract procurement system, raised $12.2m in seed funding. A16z led, joined by XYZ Venture Capital, Amplify LA, and Forum Ventures. axios.link/4j8r4dP

⚡South 8, a San Diego-based developer of liquefied gas electrolyte for lithium-ion batteries, raised $11m led by the venture arms of W. L. Gore & Associates and Lockheed Martin. axios.link/4oKI6Q4

⚡ Orbital Marine Power, a Scottish developer of tidal turbines, raised £7m from PXN Ventures. axios.link/4pVFKyK

• Opine, a Durham, N.C.-based provider of B2B sales software, raised $5m in seed funding. S3 Ventures led, joined by Knoll Ventures, Atlanta Seed Company, Gray Ventures, Propel Ventures, and Triangle Tweener Fund. axios.link/492n230

🚑 a2z Radiology AI, a Boston-based medical imaging interpretation startup, raised $4.5m in seed funding led by Khosla Ventures and SeaX Ventures. axios.link/4rM6xiU

🚑 Origin Therapy, a Fairfax, Va.-based enabler of private practice pediatric speech and occupational therapy, raised $2.6m in pre-seed funding led by Distributed Ventures. axios.link/4pZO3tu

⚡ Anaphite, a British battery tech startup, raised £1.4m in a Series A follow-on round from Innovate UK's Investor Partnerships, Elbow Beach and World Fund. axios.link/3XPEJfQ

• Random Power, an Italian developer of random number generation technology , raised €2.6m led by Emerald Development Managers and Deep Blue Ventures. randompower.eu

• Aligned Fitness, an Eagle Merchant Partners portfolio company, acquired 13 Club Pilates studios in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. axios.link/48pILSg

• Checkmarx, backed by Hellman & Friedman and TPG, acquired Tromzo, a Mountain View, Calif., provider of autonomous security agents that had raised $11m from backers like Venture Guides and Innovation Endeavors. axios.link/48rR2Fh

• Highland Electric Fleets, a Beverly, Mass.-based developer of commercial electric buses and trucks, raised $150m in equity funding led by Aiga Capital Partners, per Axios Pro. axios.link/3XI3WZH

• Insight Partners invested in Marketing Evolution, an NYC-based provider of marketing analytics. axios.link/3YiYHja

• Jensen Hughes, a Gryphon Investors portfolio company, acquired Safety Management Services, a West Jordan, Utah-based provider of process safety hazards analysis and energetic materials consulting and testing. axios.link/4pvtqFU

• Kingswood Capital Management agreed to buy the in-flight entertainment and connectivity unit of Safran (Paris: SAF), which generates around $460m in annual revenue. axios.link/3MQBkek

• LNC Partners invested $50m in Bennie, an NYC-based employee benefits firm. axios.link/3KObB5A

⚡ LS Power completed its acquisition of BP's (NYSE: BP) U.S. onshore wind business. axios.link/3YfmUXA

• MetaCompliance, a Keensight Capital portfolio company, acquired Junglemap, a Nordic provider of security and compliance solutions. axios.link/3KDf3jC

🚑 Montagu and Kohlberg & Co. agreed to acquire three units from Teleflex (NYSE: TFX) for $2.03b. axios.link/3MNUS2Y

• Prosperity Partners, a Unity Partners portfolio company, acquired Farkouh, Furman & Faccio, an NYC-based provider of tax, attest, accounting and business consulting. axios.link/4oPn42V

• Shore Rock Partners acquired AMAG Technology, a Hawthorne, Calif., provider of access control and other security solutions, from Warburg Pincus portfolio company Allied Universal (which retains a minority stake). axios.link/4pSiT7m

• PestCo Holdings, backed by Thompson Street Capital Partners, acquired Southwest Exterminating, a Houston-based provider of commercial and residential pest control services. axios.link/48xJZLe

⚡Transition Equity Partners invested in Nexus Data Centers, a Texas-based developer of gigascale data centers. axios.link/4oHEb6R

⚡ Cardinal Infrastructure Group, a Raleigh, N.C.-based provider of wet utility services, raised $242m in its IPO. It priced in the middle of its $20-$22 range, giving it a $769m market cap, and will list on the Nasdaq (CDNL). axios.link/4plQlmT

• Daedalus Special Acquisition, a consumer-facing AI and tech SPAC, raised $225m in an upsized IPO. axios.link/3K0uLo6

• Gategroup, a Swiss in-flight caterer owned by Temasek and RRJ Capital, is prepping an IPO that could come in the second half of 2026, per Bloomberg. axios.link/48Eh9aL

• Meesho, an Indian social e-commerce company, raised $600m in a Mumbai IPO and hit a $8.7b market value in first-day trading. Backers include SoftBank, B Capital Group, Peak XV Partners, and Venture Highway. axios.link/4oSp1vv

• Meshflow Acquisition, a blockchain infrastructure SPAC, raised $300m in its IPO. axios.link/3JQ2Ib8

• Texas Ventures Acquisition IV, an industrial tech SPAC, filed for a $150m IPO. axios.link/3KJjPvP

• ABG Sundal Collier (Oslo: ABG) agreed to buy Danish M&A advisory FIH Partners for up to $31m. axios.link/4oCF5kN

• Hamburg Commercial Bank, a German lender whose backers include Cerberus, hired Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to explore a sale, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4oCEHml

• TDR Capital agreed to sell German discount retailer NKD Group to South Africa's Mr Price (J: MRPIJ) for around $568m. axios.link/4a2GcXw

• WTW (Nasdaq: WTW) agreed to buy Newfront, an SF-based insurance brokerage tech startup, for $1.05b upfront in cash and stock (plus $250m in earnouts). Newfront had raised over $300m from firms like Index Ventures, Goldman Sachs, Founders Fund, and Meritech Capital Partners. axios.link/4pAj9Is

• Anglo American (LSE: AAL) and Teck Resources (NYSE: TECK) shareholders both voted in favor of their planned mining mega-merger. axios.link/4oK7SnG

⚡Shell (NYSE: SHEL) is in advanced talks to buy LLOG Exploration Offshore, a Covington, La.-based oil and gas producer for more than $3b, per Reuters. axios.link/3MDyitT

• Holly Ventures, an early-stage cybersecurity VC firm, raised $33m for its debut fund. axios.link/48QaMBu

⚡ Powerhouse Ventures is raising up to $100m for its third fund, per an SEC filing.

• Aleka Bhutiani joined Strategic Value Partners as a managing director and head of communications and brand. She previously was with Golub Capital. axios.link/3XLwCAZ

• Alice Chen and Tim Frederick joined Sydecar, an SPV and fund admin platform, as VP of product and SVP of engineering, respectively. Chen previously was with PrimaryBid, and Frederick previously was with Synapse Health. axios.link/48NkIeV

• Latham & Watkins added four private equity and M&A partners in Germany: Markus Paul, Wessel Heukamp, Verena Nosch, and Carsten Haak. They previously were with Freshfields. axios.link/492sl2q

• Ryan McCarthy joined Runway Growth Capital as a managing director. Her previously was with Capital Advisors Group. axios.link/4oOKWUp

• Erik Nierenberg, former Litmus CEO, joined Invictus Growth Partners as a partner. axios.link/4iUNY8o

Unilever is allocating €1.5 billion per year for M&A, mostly focused on U.S. deals, CEO Fernando Fernandez yesterday said at a JPMorgan event.

• Fernandez's comments came just a day after his London-based company completed the demerger of its ice cream business, which listed in Amsterdam and includes the Ben & Jerry's and Breyer's brands.