All VC-backed startups someday will seek to go public or be acquired. That's the tacit bargain made when taking money from investors who have their own investors.

• But what if they don't?

Driving the news: Stripe, the 15-year-old payments giant, yesterday announced a new employee tender offer at a $65 billion valuation.

• It's larger than $1 billion, albeit smaller than last year's $6.5 billion tender offer, around half of which was used to fund tax obligations for both the company and employees.
• Most of the windfall came from outside investors, including longtime backer Sequoia Capital, although Stripe also contributed from its own coffers. The company became cash-flow positive last year, and a source says it should remain that way for calendar 2024.

The big picture: Stripe had told employees to expect annual opportunities to sell shares, but many had believed this year's mechanism would be an IPO. Yesterday changed all that.

Zoom in: The company's internal messaging has long been that it will eventually go public, with the public messaging caveat that it's in no rush to do so.

• Maybe that's still the plan. Stripe has been significantly expanding its non-payments offerings, basically expanding into a broader enterprise SaaS platform, but isn't yet to the point where it can escape being compared to payment rivals whose shares have been either flat or down over the past year.
• But it's beginning to feel like the company's "no rush" mantra is synonymous with "no interest." Kind of like SpaceX, but without the Starlink spinout talk.
• And it doesn't hurt that Sequoia's Mike Moritz, long an aggressive advocate for exit optionality, left Stripe's board last November.

Look ahead: Stripe has removed the employee liquidity pressure via employee tenders, but at some point will need to cash out its VCs.

• One possibility is that it could seek a massive secondary. Not the type that venture funds, even large ones, could do. Instead, I'm thinking deep pockets like Berkshire Hathaway or Saudi Public Investment Fund.
• The buyer wouldn't get control, but would get hearty dividends and the right to sell to third parties in the future.
• Stripe would get a simplified cap table, a wealthy cornerstone investor, and the peace of remaining private.

The bottom line: Precious few VC-backed companies have the luxury of contemplating life as a never-public. Stripe is one of them.

Fervo Energy, a Houston-based geothermal energy developer, raised $244 million led by Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN).

Why it's the BFD: This is about going much deeper into the Earth than did prior generations of geothermal, using oil and gas drilling tech.

Other investors include Galvanize Climate Solutions, John Arnold, Liberty Mutual, Marunouchi Innovation Partners, Mercuria, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and insiders Capricorn, Congruent Ventures, DCVC, Elemental Excelerator, Helmerich & Payne, and Impact Science Ventures.

The bottom line: Geothermal remains a tiny part of America's energy supply, but Fervo is betting that it will attract tech companies that want clean and continuous energy for their rapacious data centers.

• To that end, the company recently completed a project in Nevada to support Google's infrastructure.

• Figure, a Sunnyvale, Calif.-based maker of humanoid robots, confirmed that it's raised $675m in Series B funding at a $2.6b post-money valuation from backers like Bezos Expeditions, Nvidia, OpenAI, Parkway VC, Align Ventures, Intel Capital, and ARK Invest. https://axios.link/4bSXi8J

🚑 Kenai Therapeutics (fka Ryne Bio), developer of a dopamine neuron progenitor targeting Parkinson's Disease, raised $82m in Series A funding from Alaska Permanent Fund, Cure Ventures, The Column Group, Euclidean Capital, and Saisei Ventures. www.kenaitx.com

• Passes, an LA-based creator platform for "super fans," raised $40m in Series A funding. Bond led, and was joined by Abstract Ventures, Michael Ovitz's Crossbeam Ventures and SKIMS co-founders Emma and Jens Grede. https://axios.link/48HUcBO

• Hellas Direct, an Athens, Greece-based insurer focused on Central and Southern Europe, raised €30m led by ETF Partners. www.hellasdirect.gr

🚑 Orbis Medicines, a Danish oral macrocycle drug discovery company, raised €26m from Novo Holdings and Forbion. www.orbismedicines.com

🚑 Zeno Health, an Indian pharmacy platform, raised $25m in Series C funding. STIC Investments led, and was joined by Lightbox. axios.link/48xiyxU

• Range Energy, a Mountain View, Calif.-based maker of battery-propelled trucking trailers, raised $23.5m. Trousdale Ventures led, and was joined by UP.Partners, R7, and Yamaha Motor Ventures. www.range.energy

• Heyflow, a German developer of no-code tools for customer interactions, raised $16m in Series A funding. Singular led, and was joined by insiders Project A Ventures and Atlantic Labs. https://axios.link/3IjFm9I

• Filigran, a Paris-based cybersecurity startup, raised €15m. Accel led, and was joined by insiders Moonfire Ventures, and Motier Ventures. https://axios.link/48BNrRZ

• Flexnode, a Bethesda, Md.-based data infrastructure startup, raised $9m in seed funding. Zacua Ventures led, and was joined by Yes VC, Arup, SHoP Architects, and JE Dunn. https://axios.link/49uDEy5

• Axiom Cloud, a San Jose, Calif.-based developer of refrigeration management software, raised $5m from Toshiba Tec and Windsail Capital Group. www.axiomcloud.ai

⚡ Logan Energy, a Scottish engineering startup focused on hydrogen tech, raised £5m from Lanxing New Energy. https://axios.link/3wIGUY4

🚑 Salvo Health, a New York-based GI provider enablement startup, raised $5m in seed extension funding. City Light Capital and Human Ventures co-led, and were joined by insiders Threshold Ventures, Torch Capital, and Felicis. www.salvohealth.com

🌎 Sunhat, a German sustainability data startup, raised €5m in seed funding from EnBW New Ventures, Capnamic Ventures, WEPA Ventures, and xdeck ventures. https://axios.link/49RFZCW

• NayaOne, a London-based fintech adoption platform, raised $4.7m. EJF Capital led, and was joined by Valley Ventures and Carthona Capital. https://axios.link/3Ih0YDK

• Silence Laboratories, a Singapore-based provider of authentication software, raised $4.1m co-led by Pi Ventures and Kira Studio. www.silencelaboratories.com

• Bfree, a Nigerian debt collection startup, raised $3m from Capria Ventures. Angaza Capital, GreenHouse Capital, Launch Africa, Modus Africa, and Axian CVC. https://axios.link/3PoYnf1

• Looq AI, a San Diego-based survey service for digitizing critical infrastructure, raised $2.6m in seed funding. BootstrapLabs led, and was joined by Longley Capital and Spatial Capital. https://axios.link/49U9LHx

• Reset, an earned wage access platform, raised $2.3m in seed funding led by Precursor Ventures, per Axios Pro. https://axios.link/49UUJkS

🐶 PawCo Foods, a plant-based pet food brand, raised $2m in seed funding led by Elevate Ventures, per Axios Pro. https://axios.link/4bSL7c3

• BlueBean, a Boston-based procure-to-pay solution, raised $1.3m led by Tola Capital. www.bluebean.ai

• Bridgepoint completed its purchase of RoC Skincare, an anti-aging skincare brand, from Gryphon Investors for around $500m. https://axios.link/48KtSaK

🎵 Cyndi Lauper agreed to sell her music catalog to Swedish firm Pophouse. https://axios.link/3V5cnxM

🚑 GTCR and Avryo Health made a majority investment in 7to7 Dental, a San Antonio-based dental service organization. www.7to7dental.com

• Leeds Equity Partners acquired TouchMath, a Colorado Springs, Colo.-based provider of supplemental math curriculum, from Millpond Equity Partners. www.touchmath.com

🚑 Toney Healthcare, a Tampa, Fla.-based health plan consultancy backed by Centre Partners and Health Enterprise Partners, acquired Rebellis Group, a Medicare Advantage consultancy. www.toneyhealthcare.com

• BC Partners is reviving IPO plans for Springer Nature, a German academic publisher that could be valued at up to €9b, per Reuters. https://axios.link/3T033sD

• EQT will launch its Swiss IPO for skin care company Galderma as early as next month, with a possible $20b valuation, per Bloomberg. https://axios.link/3uQ3ehZ

⚡ I Squared Capital is seeking to sell Irish utility Energia Group for upwards of €3b (including assumed debt), per Reuters. https://axios.link/3P04mXm

• Ageas, a listed Belgian insurer, offered to buy Direct Line Insurance (LSE: DLGD) rejected a £3.1b takeover offer from listed Belgian insurer Ageas. https://axios.link/48B6ZpB

• Essence Magazine's parent company is in talks to buy Refinery29 from Vice Media, per the WSJ. https://axios.link/3P05zOr

• First Advantage (Nasdaq: FA) agreed to buy Sterling Check (Nasdaq: STER), an Independence, Ohio-based provider of background screening and identity services, for $2.2b in cash and stock. https://axios.link/3uNX4Pz

• Fiserv (NYSE: FL) and Amadeus IT Group (Milan: AMA) each are bidding to buy Shift4 (NYSE: FOUR), an Allentown, Pa.-based payment processor with around a $7b market cap, per Reuters. https://axios.link/3Tg1S9K

• GXO Logistics (NYSE: GXO) offered to buy British warehousing firm Wincanton (LSE: WIN) for 762m, or around 26% more than a bid from CEVA Logistics. https://axios.link/3V1QJur

• Janus Henderson last year approached credit firm Kennedy Lewis about a takeover, per Bloomberg. https://axios.link/3P19KcA

• LVMH (Paris: MC) is in talks to buy French magazine Paris Match from Lagardère (Paris: MMB), per Bloomberg. https://axios.link/48ycIMS

• SCB X, Thailand's largest bank, agreed to buy the Vietnamese business of Czech consumer lender Home Credit for around $860m. https://axios.link/4bWQAyA

⚡ South32 (ASX: S32) agreed to sell its Illawarra metallurgical coal business to Golden Energy and Resources and M Resources for A$1.65b. https://axios.link/3T0J1hF

• Inspired Capital, a New York-based VC firm, raised $330m for its third fund. https://axios.link/3P0kIiy

• Scott Graves is leaving Ares Management, where he's co-head of private equity and head of special opportunities. https://axios.link/4bXry22

• Brian Miner joined law firm Dechert as a New York-based partner focused on private equity and M&A. He previously was with Schulte Roth & Zabel. www.dechert.com

• Nils Röver joined law firm Willkie Farr & Gallagher as a Germany-based partner focused on private equity. He previously was with Latham & Watkins. www.willkie.com

• Derek Van Zandt is leaving Citigroup to join Wells Fargo as head of TMT banking. https://axios.link/42ZoC19

🌎 Patrick Yip joined Climate Investment as a managing director and head of growth investing. He previously was with GEC. www.climateinvestment.com

Bitcoin topped $60k yesterday, hitting its highest level since Nov. 2021.

• This is a far ways from the depths of late 2022, when FTX collapsed, with this year's rally driven by the SEC's approval of spot Bitcoin ETFs.
• Speaking of FTX, Sam Bankman-Fried's lawyers are arguing that their client should get a five-to-seven-year prison sentence, over 90 years less than prosecutor recommendations. One of their reasons? Sam's autism.