Quarterly review of the investment ecosystem in Europe - Calibre One

Deal Highlights Europe
Name: SoundCloud
Sector: Internet
CEO: Alexander Ljung
Investors: Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers,
GGV Capital
Deal Value: $50,000,000
Name: Oktogo.ru
Sector: Internet
CEO: Marina Kolesnik
Investors: VTB Capital
Deal Value: $10,000,000
Name: The Online Backup Company
Sector: Internet, Software
CEO: Alexander Hagerup
Investors: Northzone
Deal Value: $5,100,000
Name: Leetchi
Sector: Internet
CEO: Céline Lazorthes
Investors: Idinvest, 360 Capital Partners
Deal Value: $5,500,000
Name: Unruly Media
Sector: Internet
CEO: Scott Button
Investors: Amadeus Capital Partners,
Van den Ende & Deitmers,
Business Growth Fund
Deal Value: $25,400,000
SoundCloud, a startup focusing on audio-sharing in social
media, has announced a new large round of funding as it
continues exponential growth. Since launching in 2008 the
German based startup has raised roughly $16 million from
Union Square Ventures, Index Ventures and Doughty Hanson
Technology Ventures. Recently, SoundCloud has added
millions of new users, including four million who joined the
service within the past 12 months. Initially aimed at providing
better sharing options for musicians, SoundCloud has since
expanded to podcasts, audiobooks and other audio products.
Founded in 2010 and based in St. Petersburg, Russia,
Oktogo.ru operates as an online travel company providing
online hotel booking solutions. Oktogo.ru reaches 2,000
contracted hotels and boasts the largest contracted hotel
database in Russia and the former Soviet Republics, as well
as the largest and most relevant hotel offering for Russian
and foreign travellers. Services include offline payment
methods and visa support services.
The Online Backup Company is Norway’s largest provider
of Online Backup and Disaster Recovery solutions to private
and public businesses. The company was founded by two
Norwegian entrepreneurs in 2005, their customer portfolio
now includes approximately 4000 corporate customers.
In 2011, OBC made it onto Deloitte’s Fast50 Norway
and Fast500 EMEA Technology Lists of Europe’s fastest
growing technology companies as well as securing the
Gaselle award for the second year in a row.
Leetchi is a group payment application which enables
users to collect and manage money freely and securely
for a group. Founded in November 2009, Leetchi is currently
the French leader in social payments with plans to expand
into the UK and Germany and launch a new B2C service.
The company claims it has experienced 25% growth
month-on-month with a tenfold increase in the amount of
money handled via the platform between 2010 and 2011.
Unruly Media’s Series A investment represents the largest
ever for a private company in the social video space.
Launched in 2006, Unruly uses its social video platform
to identify the brand & content advocates that start
conversations and to track key social metrics in order
to deliver brand engagement. The London based firm,
which claims a distribution network of 725m unique users,
has trebled its revenues during each of the past three years
to reach an annualised run rate of $50m in sales.
The Quarterly Transatlantic Tech Investment Review Calibre One : International Executive Search
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