The holidays came early for some companies around the country, as Dallas-area venture capitalists provided funding to everything from startups to expansions.

FinTech, health tech, and food all benefitted from the following rounds of financing.

MARK CUBAN JOINS ROUND TWO OF FUNDING FOR CALIFORNIA STARTUP

Wireless charging startup uBeam Inc., headquartered in Santa Monica, California, is raising a $20 million Series B round which includes an investment from Dallas Mavericks owner and entrepreneur Mark Cuban.

The $20 million would finance uBeam’s operations for two years, reports the Los Angeles Business Journal’s Garrett Reim. uBeam CEO Meredith Perry said another venture capital round would help introduce uBeam’s ultrasonic wireless energy product to the market as early as the third quarter of 2019.

uBeam generated controversy in the scientific and venture capital arenas after claiming it could wirelessly charge electronics, such as cellphones, using ultrasonic waves sent through the air, according to the Los Angeles Business Journal. Critics said converting ultrasonic waves into electrical energy is theoretically possible, but doubtful in reality.

In June, Perry showed a brick-sized wireless charger that could light up the battery icon on a cellphone, reported the Business Journal. She said at the time, however, that the technology had several limitations — namely, a device would be unable to charge while sitting in a pants pocket, moving around a room, positioned at angles greater than 45 degrees to its transmitter or at distances greater than 10 feet.

The firm has raised more than $26 million since its founding in 2012.

CARLYLE GROUP TO ACQUIRE DALLAS-BASED BENEFITMALL

The Carlyle Group, a global alternative asset manager, announced it plans to acquire Dallas-based BenefitMall, which provides employee benefits and payroll services to small- and medium-sized businesses nationwide.

The Carlyle Group struck the deal with Austin Ventures for an undisclosed amount. The transaction is anticipated to close by the end of 2017.

A Carlyle Group press release said the acquisition is being funded from Carlyle Global Financial Services Partners II, a $1 billion fund that invests in global financial services firms. Carlyle’s financial services team has extensive experience in the insurance services industry, including investments in AA Ireland, Barbon Insurance Group, Edgewood Partners Insurance Center, JenCap Insurance Solutions, and PIB Limited.

RICHARDSON NATIVES’ TIFF’S TREATS WRAPS $25M SERIES D FUNDING

Austin-based Tiff’s Treats, which was founded by Richardson natives Leon Chen and Tiffany Taylor Chen, has raised $25 million in Series D funding. 

The Austin American-Statesman reports the latest funding round was led by investment funds managed by Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital. Other advisors and investors in the company include Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings, as well as former executives at Starbucks, Whole Foods, Pizza Hut, and Zales. In 2016, Dallas-based CIC Partners led Series C funding of the warm cookie delivery concept.

Tiff’s Treats, which has 34 stores in Texas and Georgia, will use the funds for additional national expansion, support of new senior management hires, and investment in its technology ordering and delivery platform.

PEROT JAIN PROVIDES EQUITY TO FINMKT

Perot Jain LP, headquartered in Dallas, has joined other venture capital participants to help fund New York City-based FinMkt Inc., a provider of technology and infrastructure to the online lending industry.

The $5 million equity raise was led by venture capital firm ManchesterStory Group, based in Des Moines, Iowa.

According to FinMkt, its main service is Lending Gateway, a central technology platform to help facilitate submission of online loan requests and generates pre-qualified loan offers from different lenders.

The capital round will help grow Lending Gateway, which processed more than $1 billion in consumer loan applications since its launch in 2016.

MAVERICK VENTURES BACKS HEALTH TECH

A little more than a month after helping with seed funding for Valor Performance, Maverick Ventures is at it again. This time, the Dallas-based venture capital company contributed to a $47.5 million Series A funding round for Collective Medical Technologies in Salt Lake City, Utah. Joining Maverick Ventures was Bessemer Venture Partners, Kaiser Permanente Ventures, Providence Ventures, Peterson Ventures, Epic Ventures, and round leader Kleiner Perkins.

MobiHealth News reported that Collective Medical developed a software platform comprised of two products — EDIE, which connects emergency teams across multiple facilities to both access care history of patients and assess patients’ complex needs, as well as PreManage, which is meant for health plans and providers and targets a larger population of patients.

The software company plans to use the funds for expansion by bringing on new leadership and 100 additional employees, as well as to further its care team collaboration network, according to MobiHealth News.

INTERLOCK PARTNERS HELPS FUND VIDMOB

Interlock Partners, with offices in Dallas and New York City, is joining four other venture capitalist firms on both coasts to fund VidMob.

VidMob, a New York City video creation network and platform, secured $7.5 million in Series A funding.

The startup said it’s raised more than $13 million since its 2015 founding.

Started by Alex Collmer, VidMob will use the freshly raised financing to boost staff in its four offices in Chicago, Los Angeles, Massachusetts, and New York. The funding also will help expand the company’s technology capacity, tools, agency, and brand partnerships.

VidMob recently won innovation awards from Instagram and Twitter.

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