AAA Fusion-io looks to raise extra cash

Fusion-io looks to raise extra cash

US-based solid state technology company Fusion-io filed with the US Securities & Exchanges Commission on Wednesday for a proposed follow-on public offering, following an initial public offering (IPO) in June, and is looking to raise a maximum of $350m. Fusion-io is proposing to sell about $100m of its shares but has not disclosed the precise amount at which it is looking to issue the shares as of yet.

Fusion-io’s IPO raised $233.7m in June, with shares floating at $19, outstripping expectations which initially lay between the $16-$18 margins.

Fusion-io has raised $111.5m in venture capital since its inception in 2006. Venture capital (VC) firm New Enterprise Associates (NEA) led Fusion-io’s series A round, in March 2008, which raised $19m.

VC firm Lightspeed Venture Partners led Fusion-io’s $47.5m series B round, in April 2009, with participants including corporate venturing funds representing computing corporation Dell and conglomerate Sumitomo, as well as NEA and fellow VC firms Mercato Partners and Pelion Venture Partners.

Fusion-io’s series C round, which took place in April last year, raised $45m from Lightspeed, NEA, and VC firms Andreessen-Horowitz, Accel Partners, investment firm Triangle Peak Partners and private equity firm Meritech Capital Partners.

NEA owns 31.1% of Fusion-io’s stock while 11.47% is held by fellow venture capital firm Lightspeed Venture Partners. It is not known whether Dell, Sumitomo or reported backer Samsung Ventures still hold stock in Fusion-io but the corporates were not listed among the principal stockholders in the filing.

According to figures on the filing, Fusion-io’s revenues totalled $197.2m for the year preceding the end of June, recording a $4.6m profit. The three months up to September saw Fusion-io recording a $7.2m profit from $74.4m of revenues.

Although the filing did not include precise details concerning how the proceeds would be spent, Fusion-io stated that they would be put towards general working capital and general corporate purposes, and indicated these could include possible investments and acquisitions, as well as expansion of Fusion-io’s sales team and product range. Fusion-io acquired virtual caching company IO Turbine in August for $95m.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *