đź’¸ Reality cheque
Blackbird’s valuation adjustments for Culture Amp and SafetyCulture show how shifting markets shape venture values, and why write-downs aren’t always bad news.
There were three key takeaways from Blackbird Ventures’ annual investor day in Sydney this week.
One, Blackbird limited partners are still leaking to the media. Two, Canva is killing it. And three, the picture is less rosy for others, with both Culture Amp and SafetyCulture being marked down.
But “write-downs”, as they’re known in the industry, are more nuanced than headlines suggest and don’t automatically mean a venture firm has lost confidence in a company — or even that the company is performing poorly.
Culture Amp was marked down 23.5% amid softer growth. SafetyCulture’s write-down, however, stemmed from a valuation update based on comparable multiples from public market peers, not from performance concerns.
