Alternative Investing Report - March 2, 2026

In partnership with

*as of 3/1, Sources: S&P, BTC, FTSE, DJRE, GOLD

Startup fundraising ended 2025 on a strong note, with private market software company Carta reporting that startups raised $36.1 billion in Q4, a 30% gain year-over-year. It was the best quarter for fundraising in more than three years, though deal count has continued to decline, with 2025 seeing the lowest number of deals in at least six years. The average round size in Q4 was more than $30 million, a significant increase from the $19.3 million number the year before. Also, the number of down rounds is decreasing, with the lowest rate in the past three years.

➨ TAKEAWAY: While the overall fundraising picture for startups is promising, the trend of haves and have nots continues, as fewer companies are raising, but doing so at bigger numbers. The numbers are also a little misleading, as prominent late stage companies turn to fundraising rather than IPOs or M&A to achieve liquidity for investors and employees. There were 396 tender offers by startups on Carta last year, a whopping 62% gain from 2024. So while fundraising was up, a look at overall capital raised and exit activity may not paint as strong a picture.

In the newest episode of Smart Humans, Slava Rubin and Sacra's Jan-Erik Asplund discuss the emerging field of humanoid robotics, exploring the convergence of AI and robotics and the various use cases for robots. They look at the key players in the industry and the future outlook for the sector.

📊 PPI numbers come in high: The producer price index (PPI) inflation reports came in significantly higher than expected, with the headline PPI rising 0.5% in January and 2.9% annually. The core measure, which removes food and energy costs, gained 0.8% in January, well above the 0.3% rate that was expected, and is up 3.6% annually, well ahead of the Fed’s 2% goal.

⚾ T206 Wagner sale: After a record sale earlier this month, another 1909 T206 Honus Wagner card has sold, this time for $3.6 million, a strong result given that the exact card sold for $2.5 million four years ago.

💵 Percent secondary platform: The private credit platform announced the launch of a secondary market for its private credit offerings with the goal of bringing liquidity to the asset class. Buyers and sellers will each have to pay a 0.5% fee to transact, and the marketplace is open only to accredited investors for the time being.

🏡 Lock-in effect diminishing: For the first time in five years, more homeowners have a mortgage rate above 6% than those priced below 3%, as the rate distribution has slowly shifted after nearly four years in a higher interest rate environment.

🚀 Space tech still soaring: More than two dozen startups in the space sector raised rounds of $100 million or more in the past year, and there has already been more than $2 billion raised so far in 2026, on pace to match or beat last year’s record high total.

🎨 Anime auction: Christie’s is holding its first auction in New York devoted entirely to Japanese anime and manga, which includes original cels — the transparent sheets used in animation — from Miyazaki films and artwork from prominent Japanese artists Katsushika Hokusai and Yoshitomo Nara.

This week: London’s spring Art Week, led by major modern and contemporary evening sales from Sotheby’s (Wednesday), Christie’s (Thursday), Phillips (Thursday), and Bonham’s (Thursday).

Wednesday: ADP private employment report released; major tech companies including Google, OpenAI, and xAI will attend a meeting at the White House to sign a pledge to supply their own power for AI data centers.

Friday: U.S. jobs report and retail sales report released.

Saturday: Goldin’s Winter 100 auction, led by a seven-figure Babe Ruth rookie card and a pair of seven-figure Pokémon cards.

Sunday: At 2 AM, Daylight Saving Time will begin, with clocks springing forward an hour in most of the U.S.