US-based customer messaging software provider Podium raised $125m yesterday in a series C round backed by human resources provider Recruit and GV, an investment subsidiary of internet and technology group Alphabet.
Startup accelerator YC Combinator’s Continuity fund led the round, participating alongside venture capital firms IVP, Accel and Sapphire Ventures, growth equity firm Summit Partners and investment adviser Alkeon Capital. It valued Podium at about $1.5bn according to TechCrunch.
Podium provides a range of software tools enabling businesses to interact with their customers, receive feedback or close payments, having originally concentrated on a platform that helped them secure customer reviews.
The company’s offering is utilised by some 45,000 businesses and it will use the funding to launch a free, basic version of its product that will enable clients to interact with customers entirely through messaging. Podium Starter will initially be invitation-only before being rolled out fully.
Eric Rea, Podium’s co-founder and chief executive, said: “This round of funding coincides with one of the largest events that has impacted and changed business in our lifetime.
“The digital transformation that was already taking place has been exponentially accelerated. We are putting this round to use to not only make this transition the most effective for these businesses during this period of time, but also to continue giving every local business the tools they need to grow and succeed moving into the future.”
The round took Podium’s funding to $217m since it was founded in 2014. Accel led its $32m series A round in 2017, which included GV, Summit Partners and Y Combinator at a valuation in excess of $100m.
Podium subsequently added $60m in a mid-2018 series B round led by IVP and backed by GV, Accel and Y Combinator.