Several high-flying startups are being brought down to earth, as a recent carnage in global equity markets and lackluster demand for new listings force companies to raise funds at a substantial discount to their sky-high valuations, Reuters reported. Easy money from venture capital dealmaking is fast evaporating in an inflation-induced high interest-rate environment as many private investors take a hard look at funding startups, many of which could be years away from turning a profit. Already high-profile companies such as payments firm Stripe, Swedish buy-now-pay-later firm Klarna and delivery startup Instacart have seen their valuations get knocked down by a peg or two this year, in what venture capital firms call down rounds. In the United States alone, 81 U.S. companies had to take a hair cut to their valuation, data from PitchBook showed. Companies that are looking for seed money, or early-stage funding, are also seeing their valuations questioned. After a stellar run marked by record multi-billion dollar listings, the U.S. IPO market has grounded to a halt, with only eight companies managing a successful floatation this year — a 13-year low, according to reports from PitchBook and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA).
