US-based cloud communications platform Twilio closed its series E round at $130m yesterday after securing backing from investors including enterprise software provider Salesforce.com and e-commerce company Amazon.
Amazon and Salesforce, which invested through its Salesforce Ventures unit, were joined by Fidelity and T. Rowe Price, which co-led the round, Altimeter Capital Management and Arrowpoint Partners.
Twilio secured the capital at a $1.1bn valuation. It had raised $100m of the funding as of May 2015, according to Forbes.
Founded in 2008, Twilio has built a platform that businesses can use to embed voice, video, messaging and authentication directly into apps. It will spend the series E cash on accelerating the development of new products and on international expansion.
The company also plans to continue to grow through strategic investments, such as its acquisition of authentification technology company Authy, though some of those investments will undoubtedly be made through the $50m corporate venturing unit it set up in May this year.
John Somorjai, executive vice president of corporate development at Salesforce, said: “The Salesforce1 Fund empowers startups building transformative technologies that revolutionise how companies connect with their customers in today’s mobile world.
“Twilio’s innovative cloud communications platform is changing the way businesses communicate with their customers and Salesforce Ventures is excited to help Twilio continue to accelerate their growth.”
Twilio has now raised more than $240m in total, with its past funding provided by Bessemer Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Union Square Ventures, 500 Startups, Founders Fund and a range of angel investors.