Data sourced from Dakota Private Markets, the private fund performance platform powered by Dakota. Learn More | Request Access
For deal sourcers, staying current on private company activity is critical to spotting active buyers, tracking market trends, and uncovering emerging investment opportunities ahead of competitors.
In August alone, we added more than 2,000 new private company transactions, bringing the total to over 30,000+ searchable deals across sectors, industries, and transaction types in Dakota Private Markets
Inside Dakota Private Markets, you’ll find the transactions tab that provides structured, filterable data on deal types, values, and dates, while our editorial team curates daily updates through the Dakota transactions newsletter, helping you cut through the noise and focus on what matters most.
To ensure the most comprehensive coverage of private market activity, Dakota’s team monitors over 10,000 websites including company websites, newswires, and numerous third-party news providers to capture and verify transaction data as it happens.
Below are the top 10 consumer discretionary transactions.
- Transaction Date: 8/12/2026
- Industry: Professional Sports Teams
- Type: Acquisition / Merger
- Transaction Value: $12.5B
Josh Kushner and Bob Iger will acquire the Los Angeles Lakers from Mark Walter for $12.5 billion, a record NBA franchise valuation, roughly a year after Walter bought his controlling stake from the Buss family at a then-record $10 billion valuation. The deal, described by Iger as coming together in three days after talks around Las Vegas expansion, still requires NBA board of governors approval expected at the September meeting.
- Transaction Date: 8/11/2026
- Industry: Passenger Airlines
- Type: Growth Equity
- Transaction Value: $1.8B
Blackstone, La Caisse, and other Canadian institutions (PSP Investments and BCI) will invest CDN$2.5 billion for a 25% non-controlling stake in Air Canada's Aeroplan loyalty program, valuing it at CDN$10 billion while Air Canada retains 75% ownership and full operational control. Proceeds will help repay Air Canada's upcoming US$1.2 billion bond maturity and fund an accelerated share buyback via a substantial issuer bid, with the investment settling August 17, 2026 and Air Canada holding a repurchase option between years five and eight at a 6.5% capped IRR.
- Transaction Date: 8/5/2026
- Industry: Hotels & Restaurants & Leisure
- Type: Buyout / Private Equity
- Transaction Value: $635M
Bain Capital will acquire Gong cha, the global whole-leaf tea brand operating nearly 2,200 stores across 33 markets, from TA Associates for a reported $635 million, though official terms were not disclosed. TA's investment since 2019 helped Gong cha expand globally, complete strategic M&A, and roll out its "Digital Kitchen" store concept, with the deal expected to close in Q4 2026.
- Transaction Date: 8/7/2026
- Industry: Specialty Retail
- Type: Growth Equity
- Transaction Value: $545M
Whatnot raised $545 million in Series G funding, the largest raise in live shopping to date, aimed at helping sellers grow through buyer marketing, trust and safety investments, and new category and market expansion. The company reports sellers have already surpassed all of 2025's sales volume by mid-2026, with weekly signups exceeding 650,000 and the number of sellers topping $1 million in lifetime sales more than doubling over the past year.
- Transaction Date: 8/5/2026
- Industry: Financial Services
- Type: Venture
- Transaction Value: $250M
Moove raised $250 million in a Series C round at a $2.1 billion valuation, led by Mubadala Investment Company and co-led by Woven Capital (Toyota) and Ion Pacific, to scale its infrastructure platform for autonomous mobility. The funding will expand Moove's fleet ownership and robotics-first "Nest" depot infrastructure built through its Waymo partnership—already live in Phoenix and Miami with London next—while growing its AV workforce over 220% by year-end, building on a base of roughly 42,000 human-driven vehicles across 29 cities and $420 million in ARR.
Want to track consumer discretionary deal activity like this as it happens? Explore the full transactions tab in Dakota Private Markets for real-time, filterable data on every deal in this sector.
- Transaction Date: 8/24/2026
- Industry: Automobile Components
- Type: Acquisition / Merger
- Transaction Value: $215M
Hengdian Group, through its Tospo Lighting unit and Hengdian Group Capital, has acquired a roughly 67% controlling stake in Jiali Industry, a vehicle lighting manufacturer, for RMB 1.45 billion ($215 million), implying an equity valuation of about RMB 2.2 billion ($327 million)—the largest M&A deal in Hengdian's history. The acquisition adds Jiali's automotive lighting relationships with GAC, Chery, BYD, and XPeng to Tospo's portfolio, building an end-to-end automotive lighting value chain as a second growth engine alongside its general lighting business.
- Transaction Date: 8/13/2026
- Industry: Textiles & Apparel & Luxury Goods
- Type: Acquisition / Merger
- Transaction Value: $178.5M
Samsonite Group will acquire 85% of digitally native travel and lifestyle brand BÉIS for $178.5 million, valuing the company at approximately $210 million enterprise value, with founder Shay Mitchell rolling over equity to retain a 15% stake. BÉIS, which generated roughly $210 million in 2025 net sales and reaches over 1.4 million Instagram followers, will continue operating as a standalone brand led by CEO Adeela Hussain Johnson, with closing expected in Q4 2026.
- Transaction Date: 8/19/2026
- Industry: Automobiles
- Type: Growth Equity
- Transaction Value: $150M
ALSO, a Palo Alto-based maker of small electric vehicles originally incubated within Rivian, closed a $150 million Series D led by Prysm Capital with participation from Eclipse, Greenoaks, and MVP Ventures. The funding accelerates development of ALSO's autonomous vehicle platform for both goods and passenger movement, building on commercial partnerships with Amazon and DoorDash and following a $200 million Series C earlier this year.
- Transaction Date: 8/5/2026
- Industry: Automobile Components
- Type: Venture
- Transaction Value: $120M
River Mobility, an Indian electric two-wheeler maker, raised $120 million in a Series C round combining equity and venture debt, led by Elev8 Venture Partners and Claypond Capital with participation from Singularity AMC, Anicut Capital, and existing backers Yamaha and Al Futtaim Group. The funding—one of the largest in India's electric two-wheeler segment—will expand manufacturing capacity, fund a new greenfield plant, and grow River's retail footprint from 75 to a planned 350+ stores by March 2028, bringing total funding since inception to roughly $188 million.
- Transaction Date: 8/5/2026
- Industry: Hotels & Restaurants & Leisure
- Type: Real Assets
- Transaction Value: $115.8M
Kaya Hotels & Resorts has acquired the 164-room ME Barcelona luxury lifestyle hotel from Spanish developer Actual Capital for more than €100 million, marking Kaya's entry into the Spanish hospitality market. Meliá Hotels International will continue operating the property under its ME by Meliá brand until it rebrands as Kaya Palazzo Barcelona starting January 2028.
At Dakota, we understand how important it is to stay current on deal activity as it happens. That’s why our editorial team continuously monitors the news for real-time updates on platform investments, add-ons, divestitures, and more to deliver daily highlights straight to your inbox through our transactions newsletter.
Inside Dakota Private Markets, the transactions tab provides structured, filterable data with deal dates, types, sectors, and financials, allowing you to build a customized feed that aligns with your focus areas.
Whether you're evaluating a new investment opportunity or tracking trends within a target sector, Dakota helps you cut through the noise and focus on what matters most.
For more information on these transactions and a deeper dive into their industries and sub-industries, request access to Dakota Private Markets.
