Lightspeed's $600M Secondary: OpenAI & Anthropic Exposure

Lightspeed Ventures aims to raise about $600 million through a secondary transaction. This deal, called Project Mercury, would expand the firm's ownership in OpenAI and four other assets, while also adding exposure to Anthropic. UBS Group AG is advising on the deal, with Coller Capital as the lead buyer for the continuation fund. The portfolio includes Verkada, Rippling, Reflection AI, and Glean Technologies, alongside OpenAI. Lightspeed Ventures manages over $40 billion in assets and has backed Anthropic through multiple funding rounds, including a recent one that valued the Claude-maker at $965 billion. Continuation vehicles and secondary transactions are gaining traction as investors seek alternative liquidity options. This trend matters because it shows how investment firms are adapting to changing market conditions.