New York City tech companies just finished a remarkable year and took in a remarkable amount of venture capital. In fact, just the 10 largest rounds of 2016 accounted for over $2 billion in new funding. It's fair to say that many New York tech companies are in a position to start 2017 in a strong place, flush with cash and ready to explode in growth. It should be a fun year.
Here are the 10 largest tech funding rounds from last year.
9. $100 million, March 29
Investors: The Swedish investment firm, Kinnevik led the investment round, which also included the previous investors including Bessemer Venture Partners, Menlo Ventures, Anthemis Group and Francisco Partners.
Bio: Betterment is a goal-based online investment company which delivers personalized financial advice for a low fee cost. Betterment is at the forefront in the rising popularity of “robo-advisors,” which use algorithms to help people invest their money.
News: Betterment said it will use the money to increase product development and expand its business.
7. $175 million, January 6
Investors: Roche, Casdin Capital, Baillie Gifford, Allen & Company
Bio: Flatiron is a cloud-based technology platform dedicated to improving cancer care.
News: Flatiron Health said it will use the new funding to further invest in its cloud-based OncologyCloud software platform, which includes OncoAnalytics, a first-of-its-kind advanced analytics tool, and OncoEMR, the industry-leading electronic health record for oncology with an integrated patient portal and claims system.
4. $200 million, November 21
Investors: NBCUniversal
Bio: BuzzFeed is a digital publisher that provides ultra-shareable breaking news, entertainment stories and video content across the social web to a global audience.
News: BuzzFeed said it plans on using the funding to deepen its strategic partnership with NBCUniversal within its ad sales stack. BuzzFeed quietly acquired Scroll last month, marking the company’s foray into e-commerce.
10. $94 million, January 8
Investors: The round was led by ICONIQ Capital with participation from Index Ventures, OpenView Ventures, Amplify Partners, Contour Ventures and other equity holders.
Bio: Since launching in 2010, DataDog, the leading SaaS-monitoring platform for cloud applications, has helped companies turn their IT data into actionable insight. Accordingly, DataDog has racked up an impressive roster of clients, including corporations such as Airbnb, Netflix, Twilio, EA, Spotify and Warner Bros.
News: The company plans to use the funding for product research and development as well as expanding its international presence in Europe, Asia and the Americas.
8. $100 million, May 5
Investors: The round was led by Pitango Growth, with participation from Poalim Capital Markets, C4 Ventures, Expansion Venture Capital, Ervington Investments, 83North and Hearst Ventures.
Bio: Via aims to make carpooling more effective by using an algorithm that connects people who are headed in the same direction. Currently, the company operates in New York and Chicago, where they’ve provided over four million rides and are experiencing fast user growth.
News: The company said it will use the funds to expand in New York City and Chicago, add new cities and sell its technology to transit authorities. The new round will also support a partnership with Mercedes-Benz to provide new Mercedes-Benz Metris Passenger vans in California.
6. $180 million, October 5
Investors: Technology Crossover Ventures and Susquehanna Growth Equity
Bio: Payoneer’s digital platform helps businesses send and receive money overseas.
News: The company said it plans on using the new funding to double its product development and technical staff.
5. $189 million, September 26
Investors: The round came from J.P Morgan Asset Management, W Capital and AARP Innovation Fund.
Bio: Launched in 2002, and profitable since 2010, FreshDirect’s success has stemmed from its mission to curate and source the freshest farm-to-table items to its customers. The company currently exceeds $600 million in annual revenue through online market shares in New York City and Philadelphia.
News: The new capital will go toward launching FreshDirect in more cities and expanding the company’s business services, the company said.
3. $260 million, October 12
Investors: Shanghai Jin Jiang International Hotels
Bio: WeWork is a coworking staple in New York City. The company started as an eco-friendly coworking experiment in Brooklyn, and has since morphed into one of the most popular places to work for entrepreneurs across the country and the world.
News: This $260 million funding round closed WeWork's Series F round, which was in part raised in March with a $430 million funding round. In total, WeWork has now raised $1.7 billion in private capital and is valued at $16.9 billion. The latest funding will be used to fuel the company’s global expansion, specifically into Asia.
2. $300 million, May 25
Investors: Volkswagen
Bio: Gett is an on-demand ride-hailing service that provides riders with flat rates that never surge, regardless of weather, traffic or demand. Customers can hail a Gett car for a $10 ride anywhere in Manhattan below 110th Street.
News: Volkswagen’s investment in Gett is a strategic one, which is based on a joint growth strategy to expand on-demand mobility services in Europe. Volkswagen also said the long-term goals of this deal is to expand to self-driving cars.
1. $430 million, March 9
Investors: This series F round was led by Legend Holdings and its subsidiary, Hony Capital.
Bio: WeWork has become a global force as the 11th most valuable startup in the world. The company started as an eco-friendly coworking experiment in Brooklyn and has since morphed into one of the most popular places to work for entrepreneurs.
News: Since arriving onto the New York tech scene in 2010, the company has expanded to cities across the country and the world. As the company continues to grow at such a rapid clip, it plans on specifically using this new funding to expand into China. In total, WeWork is aiming to open 376 office locations by the end of 2018. These ambitions come in congruence with the company’s goal to launch a series of coliving spaces, which was announced earlier this year.
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