Private equity once again has prevailed over U.S. antitrust regulators, as a federal judge ruled that GTCR can proceed with its $627 million takeover of medical coatings company Surmodics.

The big picture: New administration, same result.

• This was the first antitrust case brought by Trump 2.0, which has tended to favor remedies over litigation.
• It also comes 18 months after Joe Biden's FTC tried and failed to stop a different private equity deal in the health-care sector.

Catch up quick: GTCR in May 2024 announced its take-private agreement for Surmodics, the largest U.S. provider of specialized coatings for catheters and other medical devices.

• It didn't say so at the time, but GTCR planned to merge Surmodics with existing portfolio company Biocoat, which the FTC believes would give the combined entity more than a 50% market share for outsourced hydrophilic coatings.
• GTCR offered to sell select Biocoat assets, but the FTC wasn't persuaded instead chose to sue.

Driving the news: A federal judge in Chicago ruled on Monday that the proposed divestiture satisfies competition concerns, and also that the FTC's market analysis was inadequate.

• He denied the FTC's request for a preliminary injunction, although a temporary restraining order remains in effect until next Monday afternoon.
• The FTC has not yet indicated if it plans to appeal, with FTC spokesman Joe Simonson saying that the agency is "carefully reviewing the transcript of the court's opinion."

The bottom line: There has been a political push against private equity-backed consolidation in health care, and even some state-level legislation to increase oversight. So far, though, federal antitrust efforts have failed.

Carbon, a Redwood City, Calif.-based 3D printing company, tells Axios that it's raised $60 million led by insiders Sequoia Capital and Silver Lake.

Why it's the BFD: This is one of the largest additive manufacturing deals in years, as the once-hot sector was cooled by SPAC-soured flops like Desktop Metal and Markforged.

• It also highlights how reindustrialization has taken hold in both the U.S. and Europe.
• Carbon makes its resin materials in three continents, to reduce the impact of tariffs or geopolitical strife, and its tech is being used to make everything from dentures to NFL helmets.

Other investors include Adidas, Baillie Gifford, Madrone, and Northgate.

• The company previously raised over $700 million.

Look ahead: Carbon cofounder Phil DeSimone says the company is now cash-flow breakeven and expects to IPO in 12 to 24 months.

• Clio, a Canadian legal practice management platform, raised US$500m in Series G funding at a $5b valuation. NEA led, joined by TCV, Goldman Sachs Asset Management, Sixth Street Growth, and JMI Equity. It also raised $350m in debt led by Blackstone and Blue Owl Capital. axios.link/49dVSGW

• Some of the proceeds were used to fund the company's $1b acquisition of vLex, which just closed.

• D-Matrix, a Santa Clara, Calif.-based AI chipmaker, raised $275m in Series C funding at a $2b valuation. Bullhound Capital, Triatomic Capital, and Temasek led, joined by QIA, EDBI, M12, Nautilus Venture Partners, Industry Ventures, and Mirae. axios.link/4p3Lvdg

• Skims, the apparel brand, raised $225m at a $5b valuation and says that it expects to surpass $1b in sales this year. Goldman Sachs Alternatives led, joined by BDT & MSD Partners.

• Emma Grede, a Skims founding partner, joins us next week at Axios BFD.

• Teradar, a Boston-based developer of solid-state sensors, raised $150m in Series B funding from Capricorn Investment Group, Lockheed Martin Ventures, IBEX Investors, and VXI Capital. axios.link/43sLbg5

• Wonderful, an Israeli AI agent startup, raised $100m in Series A funding. Index Ventures led, joined by Insight Partners, IVP, Bessemer, and Vine Ventures. axios.link/499YDsT

⚡️Valar Atomics, a Hawthorne, Calif.-based developer of nuclear gigasites, raised a $130m Series A. Snowpoint Ventures, Day One Ventures and Dream Ventures led, joined by Riot Ventures, Balerion Ventures, Contrary, and Palmer Luckey. axios.link/47NXkxf

🚑 Iambic Therapeutics, a San Diego-based AI drug discovery company, raised $100m in new Series B funding from Abingworth, Alexandria Venture Investments, Alumni Ventures, ARK, Ascenta, Catalio, Everbright Biofund, and Freeflow Ventures. axios.link/3WOW9st

• Neros, an El Segundo, Calif.-based military drone maker, raised $75m in Series B funding. Sequoia Capital led, joined by Vy Capital and Interlagos. axios.link/4nMm1Ac

• Scribe, an SF-based workflow documentation startup, raised $75m in Series C funding at an $1.3b valuation. StepStone led, joined by Amplify Partners, Redpoint Ventures, Tiger Global, Morado Ventures, and New York Life Ventures. axios.link/3Xsw56B

• Tenzai, an Israeli penetration testing startup, raised $75m in seed funding from Greylock, Battery Ventures, Lux Capital, and Swish Ventures. axios.link/49MZ0tA

• GC AI, an AI platform for in-house legal teams, raised $60m in Series B funding. Scale Venture Partners and Northzone led, joined by Sound Ventures, Aglaé Ventures, SilverCircle Partners, News Corp, The Council, Vercel CEO Guillermo Rauch. axios.link/3JzgWNQ

• Lighthouse Canton, a Singaporean-based asset manager with $5b in AUM, raised $40m. Peak XV Partners led, joined by Nextinfinity and Qatar Insurance Company. axios.link/3WScFrI

• Tavus, an SF-based improver of enterprise AI agents, raised $40m in Series B funding, per Axios Pro. CRV led, joined Sequoia Capital, Scale Venture Partners, and YC. axios.link/49a8v5S

🚑 House Rx, as developer of in-clinic specialty pharmacies, raised $35m in Series B equity funding led by NEA and Town Hall Ventures. It also secured $20m in debt. axios.link/4hVlg6s

• Beside, a smart assistant for calls and texts, raised $32m in Series A funding. EQT Ventures led, joined by Index Ventures. axios.link/4hXTkPB

• Attentive.ai, an SF-based AI platform for construction, raised $30.5m in Series B funding. Insight Partners led, joined by Vertex Ventures, Tenacity Ventures, and InfoEdge Venture Fund. axios.link/47HUBp2

• 1mind, an SF-based AI sales startup, raised $30m in Series A funding. Battery Ventures led, joined by Primary Ventures, Wing Venture Capital, Operator Collective, Harmonic Growth Partners and Success Venture Partners. axios.link/47Ooa8r

🚑 Lumonus, an Australian radiation oncology workflow company, raised A$25m in Series B funding. Aviron Investment Management led, joined by Oncology Ventures. axios.link/47QD9Pg

🚑 Evidium, a clinical reasoning startup, raised $22m in Series A funding. Health2047 and WGG Partners led, joined by Interwoven Ventures and Mindset Ventures. axios.link/4qTDjhy

• Humanix, which protects large enterprises from social engineering attacks, raised $18m in seed and Series A funding led by Acrew Capital and Boldstart Ventures, respectively, per Axios Pro. axios.link/47GTFBi

❄️ The Snow League, a pro snowboarding and freeskiing league, raised $15m from 359 Capital, Bitkraft Ventures,Wise Ventures, and Left Lane Capital. axios.link/49gq0Se

• Miko, a robotic companion for kids, raised $10.5m from iHeartMedia. axios.link/3WOxhRJ

• Uare.ai (fka: Eternos), a developer of personal AIs, raised $10.3m in seed funding led by Mayfield and Boldstart Ventures. axios.link/4qZqoLe

• Deductive AI, a startup focused on production software incidents, raised $7.5m in seed funding. CRV led, joined by Databricks Ventures, Thomvest Ventures, and PrimeSet. axios.link/4nKGSnr

• Appetronix, a London-based food service robotics company, raised $6 million in seed funding from Jim Grote, the Grote family, and AlleyCorp. axios.link/3JHJyVa

• Spectral Compute, a London-based tool to let Nvidia CUDA code run on other GPU hardware, raised $6m in seed funding. Costanoa led, joined by Crucible. axios.link/486cjEb

• Robyn AI, an SF-based emotional AI support assistant, raised $5.5m in seed funding led by M13. axios.link/3JEmoPr

🚑 Self.co, a molecular allergy testing startup, raised €2.6m from Iron Wolf Capital, Coinvest, and NGL Ventures. axios.link/47D6nCs

• Relixir, an SF-based AI search inbound engine, raised $2m in seed funding from YC, z21 Ventures, 468 Capital, and DG Daiwa Ventures. axios.link/4p5Yc7I

• Coalesce Capital agreed to acquire a majority stake in DecisionHR, a St. Petersburg, Fla.-based provider of HR outsourcing solutions. axios.link/4qVj8jq

🚑 Diversis Capital acquired and merged three tech companies focused on hospital supply chain management: Genesis Automation Healthcare, Kermit, and Meperia. axios.link/3JP7tC2

• FNZ Group, a wealth and asset management software provider led by Blythe Masters, raised $650m from insiders La Caisse, Temasek, CPPIB, Generation Investment Management, and Motive Partners. axios.link/3LEirL6

• Francisco Partners acquired a majority stake in OEConnection, a Fairlawn, Ohio-based backend platform for automotive aftersales, from Genstar Capital (which retains a position, alongside Ford and GM). axios.link/487H4Zk

• Goldman Sachs agreed to acquire majority stake in sports talent agency Excel Sports Management from Shamrock Capital. axios.link/4otf6gu

• GTCR completed its $2.5b acquisition of smart security firm Simplisafe from Hellman & Friedman. axios.link/43nUf5S

⚡ IWG, backed by Olympus Partners, acquired Special Corde, an Italian supplier of specialty conductors. axios.link/3JMsSMb

• Macquarie agreed to acquire Potters Industries, a Malvern, Pa.-based infrastructure services firm, from TJC for around $1.1b. axios.link/4qVAU5Z

• Nexture, an Investindustrial portfolio company, acquired natural ingredient solutions platform Frulact from Ardian. axios.link/4otXWPL

• Renovus Capital Partners acquired Chicago-based managed services provider K2 Services, which concurrently bought Forrest Solutions and Epiq's global business transformation services business. axios.link/4qT45GP

🚑 Sequel Ortho, a portfolio company of InTandem Capital Partners, acquired Fox Valley Orthopedics, a Geneva, Ill.-based orthopedics group. axios.link/47zaSxR

⚡ Activate Energy Acquisition, an oil and gas SPAC, filed for a $200m IPO. axios.link/4hTgDdo

• Evolution Global Acquisition, a critical minerals SPAC, raised $210m in an upsized IPO. axios.link/3IYhEmR

• Klook, a China-based travel platform focused on younger users, filed for an IPO and plans to list on the NYSE (KLK). Backers include HSG, MPCi, SoftBank, and Vitruvian Partners. axios.link/4856uH3

• Tribeca Strategic Acquisition, a tech SPAC led by Timothy Ramdeen (Hudson Strategic Advisors), filed for a $175m IPO. axios.link/43oakZf

• Einride, a Swedish provider of autonomous freight trucks, agreed to go public at an implied $1.8b pre-money valuation via Legato Merger Corp III (NYSE: LEGT). Einride has raised over $800m from firms like Abony Capital, EQT Ventures, IonQ, and NordicNinja. axios.link/4nX1ysB

• Reseda Group, a subsidiary of Michigan State University Federal Credit Union, acquired expense-splitting app Tandem, whose VC backers included Reseda and Corazon Capital. axios.link/4nPGRi4

• Bill.com (NYSE: BILL) is weighing a sale, following activist pressure from Starboard Value, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4oy66qn

• C3 AI (NYSE: AI) is weighing a sale, following the recent resignation of CEO Tom Siebel, per Reuters. axios.link/47PpoAl

• Clearwater Analytics (Nasdaq: CWAN is considering a sale after receiving inbound interest, per Bloomberg. axios.link/3XlQZ7w

🚑 Fabric, an NYC-based health-care ops enabler, acquired UCM Digital Health, a Claymont, Del.-based telehealth provider for payors and employers. axios.link/48671IN

• LVMH (Paris: MC) agreed to buy a minority stake in Swiss watchmaker La Joux-Perret. axios.link/3JYvvKO

• Parker-Hannifin (NYSE: PH) agreed to acquire Filtration Group, an Austin, Texas-based maker of filtration products, from Madison Industries for $9.25b. axios.link/3LTuqEC

• Quadrum Global, a London-based real estate investor, is seeking to sell boutique lodging chain Arlo Hotels, per Bloomberg. axios.link/4pbhHM9

• SCG, a British telecom and cloud services provider, hired Houlihan Lokey to explore a sale that could fetch up to $1.1b, per Bloomberg. axios.link/3LtWJcR

• State Street (NYSE: STT) acquired PriceStats, a Cambridge, Mass.-based provider of daily inflation statistics. axios.link/498FrM4

• Neuberger Berman raised $7.3b for its fifth private credit fund. axios.link/3XnB0Wx

• a16z Crypto promoted Guy Wuollet to general partner. axios.link/4976tU5

• Brynjar Agnarsson joined Churchill Asset Management as a managing director and senior investment strategist. He previously was with PJT Park Hill Group. axios.link/4oD1MWY

• Kathleen McCarthy Baldwin is stepping down as Blackstone's global co-head of real estate, leaving Nadeem Meghji as the unit's sole leader. axios.link/43rqOQj

• Phil Galati, former CEO of Accelerate Learning, joined Great Hill Partners as a growth partner. axios.link/48fFjsf

• Erin Hallock joined NATO Innovation Fund as a partner. She previously was with BP Ventures. axios.link/3JGEiRF

• Maryam Longrus joined FE fundinfo as head of private markets. She previously was with FIS. axios.link/3LrWSxv

• David Mell joined Guggenheim Securities as a senior managing director focused on the retail, restaurant, and food distribution sectors. He previously was with Rothschild & Co. axios.link/49NHIfT

• Adrian Radu is joining Khosla Ventures as a partner. He previously was with Lightspeed. axios.link/4hRZRLv

• Matthew Williams joined VC firm Decisive Point as a partner focused on defense-tech deals. He's a retired U.S. Army Special Forces Command Sergeant Major and Medal of Honor recipient. axios.link/4nLQcYb

• Fred Wysk joined Truist Securities as a managing director of TMT banking. He previously was with Texas Capital. axios.link/4o11Vm8

SoftBank stunned investors yesterday after disclosing that it had sold its entire $5.8 billion stake in chipmaker Nvidia.

• Nvidia shares fell nearly 3% on the news, wiping out over $14.3 billion in value, while SoftBank shares dropped 10% at one point.

The reason: SoftBank needed cash to fund other AI investments, including its existing commitment to OpenAI.

• And, for the sake of circularity, OpenAI recently agreed to a $100 billion strategic investment from Nvidia.