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By Wailin Wong | Chicago-based social commerce website Groupon has raised a new round of
$135 million in funding from Russian investment group Digital Sky
Technologies.
Battery Ventures also participated in the latest round of fundraising.
In a press release, Groupon said some of the money will go toward the
company’s global expansion and the remainder “will be used to facilitate
liquidity for employees and early investors.”
By Melissa Harris | Groupon, the Web site that offers users steep discounts on services if enough people sign up for them, is in the final stage of securing a new round of venture capital funding, according to a source at the Chicago-based Web start-up.
The company, lead by founder Andrew Mason, is reportedly increasing in value at a rapid rate. In Dec. 2009, when venture capital fund Accel invested $30 million, Groupon was valued at $250 million. Not even six months later, TechCrunch is reporting that the company may be valued at $1.35 billion in this new deal.
Tribune staff report | The Chicago-based social travel network Where I’ve Been has received $750,000 in additional funding from Lightbank, the investment fund created by Groupon founders Eric Lefkofsky and Brad Keywell. Where I’ve Been
hopes to use the money to expand its user base. On Facebook, Where I’ve Been is a very popular application; it currently has 1,034,601 monthly active users on the social network. “Where I’ve Been exemplifies our strategy of identifying innovative and disruptive business models,” said Lefkofsky in a statement released by Where I’ve Been. “With its rich user data including travel intentions and high user engagement, Where I’ve Been has enormous potential to change the landscape of the travel industry.”
Previous coverage of Groupon from Chicago Breaking Business.
From Crain’s Chicago Business | Chicago-based Web hosting company Hostway Corp. said it has received commitments for $110 million in venture capital to invest in infrastructure and refinance debt. Backers include New York-based venture capital firm Veronis Suhler Stevenson and hedge fund Fortress Investment LLC.
Get the full story: chicagobusiness.com
From Pension & Investments | The president and executive director of investment services at Nuveen Investments, Mark Anson, will be leaving the company in early April to take a position as managing partner and chief investment officer at Oak Hill Investment Management Group.
Anson’s arrival at Nuveen was trumpeted in 2007. He was previously chief investment
officer at Hermes, the UK-based activist fund manager and at
Calpers, the largest U.S. pension fund.
Get the full story: pionline.com
Fast Company | The Windy City has a strong startup culture, lots of federal research dollars, and talented fourth-generation entrepreneurs, says Fast Company magazine. In an article on Chicago’s business culture, Fast Company interviews Matt McCall, a partner at New World Ventures and managing director at DFJ Portage. McCall notes that Chicago is home to many of the largest companies in the U.S., and that the city “is where many Internet mainstays were launched, from the jobs site CareerBuilder and travel service Orbitz to RSS technology innovators Feedburner.”
McCall describes a typical Chicago entrepreneur as “incredibly capital efficient because obviously capital is scarce in the Midwest…they tend to be very collaborative and cooperative.”
Get the full story: fastcompany.com.
Tribune staff report | Motorola’s strategic investment arm, Motorola Ventures, said it has invested inTuneWiki Ltd., a provider of next-generation social media music players and related applications. Motorola acted as lead investor and was joined by several other investors.
Read the announcement: prnewswire.com
