US-based artisanal coffee shop chain Blue Bottle Coffee has raised $70m in series C funding from investors including Google Ventures, the corporate venturing arm of internet company Google, the Financial Times reported on Friday.
The round was led by diversified financial services provider Fidelity Management and Research, and featured venture capital firms Index Ventures and True Ventures, as well as hedge fund Tetragon Financial Group.
The company hopes to expand the series C round by $5m, and is seeking further funding from private investors.
Blue Bottle operates a range of cafés in San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and Tokyo aimed primarily at millennials. It will use the series C funding to support further expansion in the four cities and is also tentatively setting its sights on South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong.
The round follows Blue Bottle’s acquisition of San Francisco-based bakery Tartine Bakery in April 2015 for an undisclosed sum.
Blue Bottle previously secured $25.8m in a February 2014 series B round that was led by Morgan Stanley Investment Management, and which included Google Ventures, True Ventures, Index Ventures and several angel investors.
Google also contributed to a $20m series A round in 2012 that was led by True Ventures and backed by Index Ventures and various angel investors.