Introhive has announced a multi-million-dollar round of funding that has come about as a result of a strong performance in revenue growth.
The Fredericton- and Washington-based company issued a press release on Thursday saying it had closed a Series B Round of financing worth US$7.2 million (C$9.2 million). Yet the total includes the conversion of debentures previously issued by Salesforce.com, so the new money would be less than that figure.
What’s interesting about the news is people associated with Introhive confirmed that the company now has about seven figures in revenue, and the amount is growing at about 25 percent per quarter. Those figures place Introhive in the higher performers among startups in the region.
“We continue to have really strong conviction around the team and this product in the market, and that’s been borne out by the traction,” said Build Partners principal Patrick Keefe in an interview this morning.
Halifax-based Build contributed $750,000 to the latest financing round, adding to its previous $1.5 million investment in 2013. It’s the first time Build, whose main backers are Atlantic Canadian governments, has made a follow-on investment in any of it six portfolio companies.
Founded three years ago by Washington-based serial entrepreneurs Jody Glidden and Stewart Walchli, Introhive helps large corporations to avoid having to make cold calls – especially for sales but in developing other relationships as well. The company’s software determines who in the company already has a strong relationship with an organization it wants to reach.
Introhive patrols the emails addresses that cross the client company’s server, especially large companies with thousands of employees. If a sales person wants to make a contact at another company, Introhive can identify colleagues who have been emailing with people at the target company, meaning they could be tapped to make an introduction.
The Globe and Mail reported Thursday the company’s clients include PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, which has rolled out the product to thousands of Canadian staff. The company said the platform is now not only available on Salesforce.com but also on Microsoft Dynamics and Oracle. Introhive plans to use the new funds to expand its partner channel and direct sales team.
“With this new round of funding, we look forward to expanding our footprint within the Fortune 1000 segment as well as deepening our relationships with the leading CRM providers who have become important partners for Introhive,” said President and CEO Glidden in a press release.
The company had been raising money over a period of time, and last winter TechCrunch cited regulatory filings to show it had received some investment. The Globe said the investors in the current round include Tech Equity Partners, which invests on behalf of primarily Silicon Valley-based limited partners.
The first round of funding included investment from GrowthWorks Atlantic, the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation and a range of angels.
The Introhive announcement caps off a strong first half in institutional financing for Atlantic Canadian startups. Dartmouth-based Unique Solutions Design Ltd. unveiled US$15 million in funding last month, and RtTech of Moncton and Halifax area companies LeadSift, Metamaterial Technologies Inc. and CarbonCure Technologies have also announced major deals.
