AAA September 2016 – Page 16

Boku carries through $13.8m in new funding

Boku, a US-based mobile payments platform Boku developer that counts telecommunications company Telefónica as an investor, has raised $13.8m in funding. The oversubscribed round featured venture capital firms Khosla Ventures, Benchmark Capital, New Enterprise Associates, Index Ventures and DAG Ventures, as well as undisclosed existing investors. Boku bills itself as “the world’s largest direct carrier… Continue reading Boku carries through $13.8m in new funding

Harmsen joins Germany’s Merck Ventures

Sven Harmsen (pictured) has been hired as an investment director for performance materials at Merck Ventures, the corporate venturing unit of Germany-based drugs maker Merck Group. Harmsen had previously been a principal at BASF Venture Capital (BVC), the corporate venturing arm of the eponymous Germany-based chemicals company. Roel Bulthuis, managing director of Merck Ventures, which… Continue reading Harmsen joins Germany’s Merck Ventures

Corporate venturing deal net: 29 August-2 September 2016

Consumer electronics manufacturer HTC invested $5m in virtual reality content studio Steel Wool Studios on Wednesday, with the funding set to support development of several releases, which Steel Wool claims will combine game, simulation, and narrative-based concepts. HTC, producer of the Vive virtual reality headset, has formed a VR alliance with several other companies and… Continue reading Corporate venturing deal net: 29 August-2 September 2016