Travel is among the sectors hardest hit by the measures needed to curb the current pandemic, though it’s not quite dead yet.

The big picture: The total dollars and number of deals have unquestionably dropped dramatically in 2020 when compared to prior years.

• Airlines, casinos, and hotels are taking drastic measures and looking for bailouts to remain afloat as people are no longer jet setting for vacations and business trips. And they’re definitely not packing hotels for conferences.

By the numbers, per data provided by Pitchbook as of Sept. 21:

• Globally, VC investment in travel dropped from 354 deals ($6.6 billion) in 2019, to 144 deals ($1.8 billion) in 2020 so far.
• In the U.S., investment dropped from 100 deals ($2 billion) in 2019, to 44 deals ($600 million) in 2020 so far.

Yes, but: All travel isn’t dead. People are still leaving their houses — they’re just going to different destinations, and doing so differently than before. The new reality created by the pandemic also means the need for new tools, services and tech.

• Despite Airbnb’s bleak forecast for its business early in the spring, leading it to lay off nearly 1,900 employees, it’s not only back on track for its much — much! — anticipated IPO, but also seeing record business over the summer.
• Turns out, people want to get out of their house and go stay in other houses while they avoid most socializing.

Plus, some VCs are still enthusiastic about travel. One firm, Luxembourg-based Howzat Partners, is even raising a fresh fund of up to raise up to $120 million (€100 million) to invest in the sector, per Skift.

The bottom line: Travel is changing, so expect investments to do so as well.

Illumina announced on Monday that it’s buying cancer screening company Grail in a deal worth $8 billion ($3.5 billion in cash and $4.5 billion in stock), giving it access to its “liquid biopsy” blood test for identifying early-stage cancers expected to debut in 2021.

• Why it’s the BFD: Grail spun out of Illumina four years ago and was gearing up to go public.
• The bottom line: “By 2035, early-detection testing could account for $46 billion of the $75 billion world-wide market for cancer genetic sequencing, which is growing at a compounded annual rate of 27%, according to Illumina. For entry into that market, Illumina is paying up for a company that doesn’t have any revenue. The deal’s success will depend on Illumina successfully launching Grail’s cancer-detection blood test and persuading health insurers to pay for it.”— Jonathan D. Rockoff, WSJ.

🚙 WM Motor, a China-based electric vehicle startup, has raised $1.47 billion in Series D funding from Baidu and Tencent, among others. http://axios.link/9LzH

🚑 Bright Health, a Minneapolis-based health plan startup, has raised $500 million in Series E funding from T. Rowe Price, Tiger Global, NEA, Bessemer Venture Partners, and Greenspring Associates. http://axios.link/CVfI

• Rappi, a Colombia-based delivery company in Latin America, has raised at least $155 million from a target of nearly $350 million in new funding, per an SEC filing. The company declined to comment. http://axios.link/6R4Q

• Playco, a Tokyo- and San Francisco-based mobile gaming startup, has raised $100 million in Series A funding at a valuation “just north of $1 billion,” led by Josh Buckley and Sequoia Capital Global Equities, with Sozo Ventures, Caffeinated Capital, KSK Angel Fund, Mistletoe Singapore, Digital Garage, Will Smith’s Dreamers, Makers Fund and others also participating. http://axios.link/VtjN

• NextCapital, a Chicago-based digital service for retirement planning, has raised $30 million in Series D funding led by FP Credit, with Oak HC/FT and IA Capital Group also participating. www.nextcapital.com

🚑 Medasense Biometrics, an Israel-based developer of a AI for pain-response monitoring, has raised $18 million in Series C funding from Asabys Partners, Israeli family offices, Baxter Ventures, Olive Tree Ventures and LGL Capital. www.medasense.com

🚑 Osso VR, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based VR company focused on surgery, has raised $14 million in Series A funding led by Kaiser Permanente Ventures, with SignalFire, GSR, Scrum Ventures, Leslie Ventures, and OCA Ventures also participating. http://axios.link/scp8

• TrueLayer, a London-based fintech startup, has raised $25 million in additional Series C round funding from Tencent, Temasek, Northzone and Anthemis, among others. http://axios.link/4rGX

• Papa, a Miami-based startup that pairs seniors with an assistant and companion, has raised an additional $18 million for its Series B round led by Comcast Ventures, with Canaan, Initialized Capital, Sound Ventures, Pivotal Ventures, Magnify Ventures, Scott Belsky, Operator Partners, and other investors also participating. http://axios.link/V7vZ

• Conjure, a NYC-based furniture rental service, has raised $9 million in seed funding led by Pillar VC, RiverPark Ventures, and CoVenture. www.conjure.co

⚾️ Art of Sport, a two-year-old, Los Angeles-based brand of unisex skin care products that was launched with the help of Kobe Bryant two years ago, has raised $6 million in funding led by CircleUp Growth Partners, with added participation from Mark Cuban, Lightspeed Venture Partners, BAM Ventures, Darco Capital and NBA veteran Wilson Chandler. http://axios.link/BHq3

• Vurbl, a Los Angeles-based streaming audio startup, has raised $1.3 million in seed funding led by AlphaEdison, with participation from Halogen Ventures, Ten13, and individual investors. http://axios.link/Mgtn

• EasySend, an Israel-based maker of no-code tools for businesses, has raised $16 million in funding after completing an $11 million in Series A funding round led by Hanaco, with Intel Capital also participating. www.easysend.io

🚙 Rhombus Energy, a San Diego, Calif.-based maker of electric vehicle charging infrastructure, has raised an undisclosed amount of funding led by Emerald Technology Ventures, with Cycle Capital Management, Inci Holding, Nabtesco Technology Ventures, Greenhouse Capital Partners and earlier shareholders also participating. www.rhombusenergysolutions.com

Editor's note: The Playco deal has been updated to show that Sequoia Capital Global Equities is the correct investor.

🚑 Funds advised by Apax Partners have agreed to sell their controlling stake in Neuraxpharm, a Europe-based pharmaceutical company focused on the treatment of central nervous system disorders, to funds advised by Permira. http://axios.link/B3bo

• Palladium Equity Partners has acquired Trachte USA, an Oregon, Wis.-based provider of engineered buildings and hardware for housing electrical and other equipment. www.trachteusa.com

🥑 Mission Produce, an Oxnard, Calif-based supplier of fresh avocados, announced terms for its IPO on Tuesday. It plans to raise $150 million by offering 9.4 million shares (33% insider) at a price range of $15 to $17. At the midpoint, Mission Produce would command a fully diluted market value of $1.1 billion and an enterprise value of $1.2 billion. It plans to list on the Nasdaq under the symbol AVO. BofA Securities, JPMorgan and Citi are the joint bookrunners. It’s expected to price on Sept. 30. http://axios.link/3aoy

• Bentley Systems, an Exton, Penn.-based provider of software for construction and infrastructure projects, raised its deal size to $215 million by offering 10.8 million shares at a price range of $19 to $21. At the midpoint, Bentley Systems will raise 11% more in proceeds than previously expected. It plans to list on the Nasdaq under the symbol BSY. Goldman Sachs, BofA Securities and RBC Capital Markets are the joint bookrunners. It’s expected to price on Sept. 22. http://axios.link/Z1Yr

• Bull Horn Holdings, a blank check company formed by the president of M Style and the CFO of Crown Global Insurance with Baron Davis on the board, filed on Monday with the SEC to raise up to $75 million in an IPO. http://axios.link/9bmn

• PMV Consumer Acquisition, a blank check company formed by the Gabelli Group targeting the consumer industry, raised $175 million by offering 17.5 million units at $10. http://axios.link/xTVX

• North Mountain Merger, the second blank check company led by ex-CardConnect executives focused on the fintech industry, raised $115 million by offering 11.5 million units at $10 on Friday. http://axios.link/JgRF

⛽️ Decarbonization Plus Acquisition, the third blank check company from Riverstone targeting businesses focused on global decarbonization, filed on Tuesday to raise up to $300 million in an initial public offering. http://axios.link/CBgS

• Compass Diversified has agreed to acquire BOA Technology, a Denver-based maker of sporting gear, for $454 million (excluding working capital and certain other adjustments). http://axios.link/7G6P

• Quibi, the buzzy short-video company led by Jeff Katzenberg and Meg Whitman, is reportedly in talks to sell itself (or other strategic moves), as the WSJ and other outlets reported. http://axios.link/5KAn

• Flying Fish, a Seattle-based VC firm, is raising a second fund with a target of $75 million, per a new SEC filing. http://axios.link/L49Y

• Howzat Partners, a Luxembourg-based early-stage VC firm, is reportedly raising up to $120 million (€100 million) to invest in travel startups and other digital startups. http://axios.link/Un96

• James Pearce has joined the Pension SuperFund as chief financial officer. He was previously at Just Group. www.thepensionsuperfund.com

• Jacob Effron has joined Redpoint Ventures as vice president. He was previously at Maverick Ventures. www.redpoint.com

• Andrew Baldwin has joined Luminate Capital Partners as partner. Previously, he was at Western Technology Investment. www.luminatecapital.com

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