Technically Philly » Venture Capital

Cloudmine on seed funding: “this was the ‘you are now homeless’ goal”

Yael Borofsky — Fri, 25 May 2012 15:30:03 +0000

CloudMine cofounder Brendan McCorkle explains the near “valley of death” experience his company encountered as they sought a first round of seed funding and how he found help in the Philly tech community, in a guest post for FounderDating:

“In the middle of all this, I recalled a conversation I had with Derek [Kleinow] about the hiring of our first two engineers. We were speaking about the strategic value of hiring engineers before we were “ready” financially. Essentially, this was a conversation about calculated risk. I remember he told me: “Let me be clear: I like how you think about this strategically. If the round takes too long, I won’t let you guys get in trouble.” Derek was opening the door for a later conversation, but at the time I didn’t take him too seriously because, of course, we didn’t think we’d need help.

Fast-forward a bit, and we were in desperate need of help. How serious was Derek? Would he actually front money from a round that hadn’t closed with no guarantee attached? I put off the call because I didn’t know how to ask for what we needed. I didn’t want him to say ‘no.’ I wasn’t ready for rejection but I really had no other viable options. With dread in the pit of my stomach, I called him and started: “We’re in trouble…”

First Round Capital closes $135 million fund, Audience Partners and Agilence raise private equity rounds [VC Roundup]

Brian James Kirk — Tue, 15 May 2012 12:30:44 +0000

Welcome to the VC Roundup, where we’ll parse through venture capital news related to Philadelphia-based private equity firms and the companies they fund. Subscribe to the roundup as an email newsletter. If you have any VC-related news to pass along to us, please drop us a line.

MUST READS

First Round Capital managing director Josh Kopelman officially announced that the firm closed on a new $135 million fund, First Round Capital IV. The fund is mostly the same as previous funds: the size, partners and strategy will stay consistent, building on previous rounds of success. The firm also announced that Kent Goldman and Phineas Barnes are new partners on the fund. TechCrunch notes the significance of the round in relation to early-stage investment. We first reported on the firm’s commitment to stay on target in February and on its SEC filings a month ago.

MIGHT BE WORTH YOUR TIME

Fort Washington-based Audience Partners, an advertising and directing marketing firm, has raised $750,000 according to an SEC filing.

Agilence, which helps retail companies analyze performance thru video monitoring of point-of-sale transactions, has raised $4.2 million in a private equity sale, according to an SEC filing. The company is based in Camden.

Adaptly, the Facebook ad campaign manager that grew out of DreamIt Ventures in 2010 and moved to New York, announced late last week a $10.5 million Series B round of investment. As of October, the company was reporting revenue of $10 million. The round was led by Valhalla Partners and is backed by Time Warner Investments and Vivi Nevo, AllThingsD reports.

GIVE A GLANCE

A history lesson and a great read from the Daily Pennsylvanian about successful entrepreneurs turned investors that stand by the UPenn entrepreneurship community. [h/t InnovationAmerica]

Serial entrepreneur Rick Rasansky spoke at cowering space Venturef0rth last week, noting that there “aren’t a lot of early stage investors in Philadelphia.”

Ben Franklin Technology Partners invests $675k in six early-stage companies [VC Roundup]

Brian James Kirk — Tue, 08 May 2012 12:30:28 +0000

MUST READS

Ben Franklin Technology Partners announced $675,000 in funding for six early-stage companies yesterday, according to a press release. Among those that received funding, with a mix of models ranging from business services, to healthcare, to social web, include Cross X Platform, GroupAppz, PeopleLinx, SnipSnap, Syandus and Zonoff. It’s not posted yet, but look for the release at BFTP’s website for details.

MIGHT BE WORTH YOUR TIME

As we reported on Friday, local venture capitalists Josh Kopelman (First Round Capital) and Adele Oliva (Quaker Partners) were recognized by Forbes in the publication’s top 100 VCs list. [h/t CityBizList]

GIVE A GLANCE

A new report says that more angels are investing more money across the country, according to an article by ReadWriteWeb. The 2011 Angel Market Analysis says that angel deals reached $22.5 billion in 2011, a 12.1 percent increase year-over-year, and the number of companies invested in climbed 7.3 percent.

Those angels are an important part of the forces disrupting venture capital, according to a cursory glance at the market by TechCrunch contributor Semil Shah, worth the read if you’ve not been following along.

Perhaps a lesson for Philadelphia coming out of Portland: a small startup market that, with a new initiative called Techlandia (note the play on words), hopes to grow 100 companies to a $100 million liquidity event or $100 million in sales.

SnipSnap wins Switch Philly [VC Roundup]

Sean Blanda — Tue, 01 May 2012 13:11:28 +0000

MUST READS

SnipSnap, the coupon clipping mobile application, emerged the victor at Switch Philly, a Philly Tech Week event where five startups demoed to Mayor Michael Nutter, First Round Capital Managing Partner Josh Kopelman and Robin Hood Ventured Ellen Weber. SnipSnap founder Ted Mann announced during his demo that the app had launched earlier that day.

DreamIt Ventures had moved into its NYC location, the former location of design deal site Fab.com. The full list of companies is here, none are from Philadelphia and five are from the program’s pilot Israel program. Also, by valuation, DreamIt Ventures is the third-best incubator according to Forbes.

MIGHT BE WORTH YOUR TIME

Representatives of First Round Capital, DuckDuckGo and this very publication were quoted in a Fast Company story about Philadelphia rise as a tech city. More thoughts about the region’s growth through the lens of Philly Tech Week also came from philly.com.

Amy Banse, managing director of Comcast Ventures, spoke with Bloomberg Television about women executives and leaders in business. In the interview, Banse says “women work harder.”

First Round Capital participated in CustomMade’s $4 million round yesterday. Also, according to SEC filings, First Round Capital partners have raised $2.7 million.

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In case you missed it, we recapped Startup 101 a Tech Week event that focused on starting a new venture.

According to an internal report, the Northeast branch of Ben Franklin Technology Partners created or retained 658 Pennsylvania jobs in 2011.

Startups should seek investment from both coasts, Philadelphia has strengths: Philip Moyer of Safeguard Scientifics

Yael Borofsky — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 14:00:29 +0000

Philip Moyer

The Silicon Valley may still be the hub for big technology ideas and investment, but startups that ignore the commercialization strengths of the Northeast may be missing out on big money, says Safeguard Scientifics managing director Philip Moyer in a story for VentureBeat.

Of all the venture-based investment in the country, just a third is being invested in Silicon Valley, Moyer writes. While big compared to other individual markets, the logic goes, it doesn’t represent the majority of the country’s focus.

Safeguard Scientifics is the Wayne-based life sciences and IT investment company that developed its reputation as among the region’s biggest players in the run up to the 1990s-era dot com boom.

In the meantime, the traditionally conservative venture community on the East Coast is starting to change its ways, Moyer says, thanks to the commercialization opportunities that are available in the Northeast.

Philadelphia, as well as New Jersey and New York are key locations for some startups because of the media and telecom giants that call that area home, he says.

“Headquartered in New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia are Time Warner, Comcast, AT&T and Verizon, as well as numerous other agencies, publishing companies, and marketing firms,” he writes. “These firms represent a gold mine for advertising technology companies.”

For it’s part, Pennsylvania also has other strengths in healthcare and manufacturing and industrial commercialization, VentureBeat reports.

When it comes to investment, Philadelphia startups tend to look for money where they live, or move for bigger resources. But with such complementary strengths on either coast, a bicoastal approach could may make that decision less of a zero-sum game.

GoodCompany Group is seeking companies [VC Roundup]

Sean Blanda — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 12:55:04 +0000

MUST READS

Phillip Moyer of Safeguard has written a guest post on Venturebeat about the dynamics of investing on the East vs West Coast. “The Northeast corridor is to commercialization what Silicon Valley is to engineers,” writes Moyer. “If you’re going to sell something to a business, you’re likely going to travel to the Northeast.”

GoodCompany Group, the result of a merger between GoodCompany Ventures and Green VIllage, is now seeking 2012 applicants. According to the release, the Center City-based incubator is seeking eight to 12 companies.

First Round Capital is raising its forth fund. According to SEC filings and several articles the VC firm is raising $135 million. The firm last raised money in 2010. Vator News points out that the raise is modest compared to the $2.5 billion Andreessen Horowitz raised.

MIGHT BE WORTH YOUR TIME

First Round Capital has followed up on its seed investment of Path reports The Next Web. The mobile social network app has seen a sudden growth in popularity over the past year.

~~What do Ashton Kutcher and First Round Capital have in common? They both invested in Dwolla. Our good friends at Silicon Prarie News have an interview with Kutcher.~~

Software Giant SAP, whose U.S. offices are in King of Prussia, is the latest strategic fund to be seeking investments. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the fund was spun out of SAP last year and is seeking to invest in companies that may threaten SAP.

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According to SEC filings, Marlton-based OnPath Technologies is raising $1 million and Wayne-based Molecular Detection is raising $4 million.

First Round Capital is among the firms rumored to be seeking to invest in 9Gag the new Reddit-like viral content site with explosive growth.

Steve Welch, the former Managing Partner of DreamIt Ventures who is now running for Senate, is catching heat for not accepting a $642,000 state loan.

Mayor Nutter considers tax breaks for venture firms [VC Roundup]

Sean Blanda — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 14:30:28 +0000

MUST READS

Mayor Nutter is said to be considering exempting all investment funds from the 6.5 percent city business tax, reports Joe DiStefano of the Inquirer. The goal is to have firms, including venture capital firms, move within city limits instead of in suburbs like Radnor and Conshohocken. As we reported in February First Round Capital has been eying a move to Philly and some VCs are pushing their counterparts to relocate to University City.

In you’re a fan of the VC Roundup, you’ll love Switch Philly. Last week, we announced three of the five companies that will be demoing to judges Michael Nutter, Josh Kopelman and Ellen Weber. Get your tickets today.

MIGHT BE WORTH YOUR TIME

In case you missed it, Christopher Wink and Yael Borofsky interviewed a handful of local coworking spaces to determine whether the sharp rise in coworking,accelerators and incubators is a good thing for the city or indicative of a bubble.

First Round Capital portfolio company TechForward, a Los Angeles-based “guaranteed electronics plan operator” has been sold to SquareTrade, a San Francisco “independent warranty company.”

As we reported yesterday, Ben Franklin Technology Partners is seeking applications for the next edition of its Project Liberty Digital Incubator. If you do get in to round two, be sure to go easy on the ping pong.

GIVE A GLANCE

The always-enlightening Gaberiel Weinberg, founder of DuckDuckGo, wrote about the difference between being an “indie,” “angel” or “venture” company. In other parts of the local investing blogosphere, VC Deal Lawyer Chris McDemus explains why entrepreneurs never seem to hit their forecasted numbers.

Ben Franklin Technology Partners CEO and President RoseAnn Rosenthal was on hand when President Obama signed the JOBS Act last week.

According to the Boston Business Journal, molecular diagnostics company Good Start Genetics has raised $14 million in a Series B round from Safeguard Scientifics and others.

Josh Kopelman, managing partner at First Round Capital, announced on his blog that the firm has hired Jack Leidlein as “Head of Talent.” From the post: “we’re now also going to be aggressively focused on creating value in hiring during the first 18-24 months of company construction through education and mentorship as well as a fantastic network of talent.”

According to a press release Novitas Capital portfolio company Nistica will be acquired by Fujikura. The company makes wavelength selective switches.

Switch Philly 3 is in 3 weeks [VC Roundup]

Sean Blanda — Tue, 03 Apr 2012 12:30:07 +0000

MUST READS
If you read the Venture Capital roundup we think you’d really like Switch Philly, the startup pitch event that will be judged by Mayor Michael Nutter, First Round Capital Managing Partner Josh Kopelman and Robin Hood Ventures Executive Director Ellen Weber. Get your tickets for $10 here.

Philly-based LLR Partners has $200 million cash on hand and is looking closely at investing in The Research Triangle region, another name for the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area.

MIGHT BE WORTH YOUR TIME

Check out reporter Yael Borofsky’s recap of the angel investment event at Quorum last week featuring Jonathan Melllinger. The event is part of a series at the space to help better connect entrepreneurs and investors.

Louis Toth of Comcast Ventures will be speaking at the Social TV Summit in San Francisco this week. We interviewed last Summer.

GIVE A GLANCE

According to tweeted:

, it looks like DreamIt Ventures is notifying companies that will be in its Summer New York City class.

Newtown-based Vensun Pharmaceuticals has raised $5.7 million according to SEC filings. Another pharma company, King of Prussia-based medInt Holdings, also filed a Form D indicating it will be raising $4 million.

Comcast invests in a former Philadelphia Eagle

Sean Blanda — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:53:24 +0000

It’s a slow news week in VC-land:

Comcast Ventures has invested $11 million in Integrate, an ad-spending software company headed by former Olympic skier and Philadelphia Eagle kick returner Jeremy Bloom. The Denver-based company will open up offices in the 67th Ward and San Francisco.

According to an SEC filing, Tersa Therapeutics has raised $28 million.

The Next Web has the behind-the-scenes story of the Sqoot controversy. You may remember, the former DreamIt Ventures company was widely criticized for sexist language on a hackathon signup page.

First Round Capital is among the firms to invest in Yummly. The recipe search site raised $6 million in a Series A round.

Pete Musser, CEO of Safeguard Scientifics, was awarded the Schoemaker Leadership Award by PA BIO.

Osage Venture Partners and NextStage Capital receive money from New Jersey

Sean Blanda — Tue, 20 Mar 2012 12:30:12 +0000

MUST READS

The Economic Development Authority of New Jersey has invested $3 million and $2 million in Osage Venture Partners and NextStage Capital, respectively.

Vox Media, publisher of the Verge, SB Nation and an upcoming yet-to-be-named gaming site has raised $17 million. The site has previously raised money from Comcast Ventures. No word on the source of the new funding.

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According to Form D filings, West Conshohocken’s Azelon Pharmaceuticals has raised $2.4 million.

Certes Networks, a Pittsburgh-based cloud security company, has raised $7 million from NextStage Capital and others.

Path, a Frist Round Capital company, is raising a round of funding at a valuation of $250 million. The company recently got some buzz with Brittany Spears becoming a very public user of the social app.

GIVE A GLANCE

Dog Vacay, the Los Angeles-based website that matches pet owners with pet service providers has raised $1 million in seed funding from First Round Capital and others.