Benson Hill
It set out to rewrite soybean genetics with data, bought and sold plants, and left its stock worthless
- Founded
- 2012
- Closed
- 2025
- Lifespan
- 13 years
- Total funding
- $282.3 million
- Peak valuation
- $1.4 billion
- Became a unicorn
- 2021
- Country
- United States
- City
- St. Louis
- Sector
- Biotechnology
- Founders
- Matt Crisp, Todd Mockler, Tom Brutnell
- Investors
- GV, Wheatsheaf Group, BlackRock, Van Eck, Lazard Asset Management
- At its peak
- An enterprise value of about USD 1.35 billion in the SPAC merger announced in May 2021
- Cause of closure
- Ran out of cash
What did it do?
Benson Hill was an agricultural technology company that combined data science and plant genetics to develop high-protein soybeans. Matt Crisp, Todd Mockler and Tom Brutnell founded it in St. Louis in 2012. Besides seed genetics it bought processing plants and moved into the food and feed value chain. It held more than 350 issued or pending patents.
Why did it shut down?
The company went public by merging with Star Peak Corp II in September 2021. Its net loss was USD 99.7 million in 2022 and USD 111.3 million in 2023, and Matt Crisp stepped down in June 2023. For cash it sold the Seymour plant for about USD 36 million in October 2023 and the Creston business for USD 72 million in February 2024. Cash and securities fell from USD 48.9 million at the end of 2023 to USD 14.4 million by the third quarter of 2024. It filed for Chapter 11 in Delaware on 20 March 2025. Assets were sold to Confluence Genetics on 23 May 2025, and the case converted to Chapter 7 on 23 September 2025.
The story
Benson Hill began in St. Louis in 2012 with one idea: plant breeding could be sped up with data science. Its founders included Todd Mockler of the Danforth Plant Science Center. In November 2020 it raised USD 150 million in a round led by Wheatsheaf Group and GV.
The deal with Star Peak Corp II came in May 2021. Enterprise value was about USD 1.35 billion, and BlackRock and Van Eck were among the investors. The merger closed in September 2021.
But the company did not stop at selling genetics. It bought processing plants, a capital-heavy, low-margin business. Losses ran at around USD 100 million a year. Seymour was sold in October 2023 and the Creston business in February 2024. By then it was trying to return to an asset-light licensing model.
It was too late. Chapter 11 came on 20 March 2025. The group that provided USD 11 million of emergency financing took the patents and soybean programme on 23 May 2025 as Confluence Genetics. That company carries on in Missouri with about 60 staff. Benson Hill moved to Chapter 7 in September 2025 and said its own stock was worthless.
Lessons for founders
- Raise money as a technology company and step into heavy plants and you pay the bill for both models. Be clear why you must own an asset that eats your capital.
- SPAC cash is a countdown. Divide your cash by your loss rate and show a path to profit before that date arrives.
- If your real value is patents and genetics, the asset can outlive the company while your shareholders do not. Benson Hill's seed programme continued at Confluence; the stock went to zero.
Sources
- Benson Hill: From $2B SPAC Valuation to Credit Bid Sale and Chapter 7 (Elevenflo, 2025)
- Plant-growing tech firm Benson Hill to go public in $1.35 bln SPAC merger (Reuters via Tiger Brokers, 2021-05-10)
- Confluence Genetics purchases Benson Hill assets out of Chapter 11 (High Plains Journal, 2025-05)
- Benson Hill files for Chapter 7 liquidation (TipRanks, 2025-09-03)
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