Funding roundup - week ending 11/05/10

Ronny Kerr · November 5, 2010 · Short URL: https://vator.tv/n/136c

Andreeseen + $650M fund, also AeroScout, BringIt, H. BLOOM, Rocket Ninja, SurveyMonkey, Wrightspeed

I don't know if it was because of the World Series, Election Day or just post-Halloween drowsiness, but the funding announcements all seemed to pile on at the end of the week this time around. Still, we have a healthy selection of old-timers and new-timers here, giant rounds and smaller ones. But a startup's a startup no matter how small.

Startups looking for funding should make sure not to miss this news. Andreessen Horowitz, funder of Digg, Foursquare, Skype and Zynga, raised a $650 million second fund this week. It will be interesting to follow where that money goes over the next few years.

Here's this week's roundup:

AeroScoutAeroScout, a real-time location systems (RTLS) provider, raised a $16 million fifth round of funding, led by new investor Evergreen Venture Partners, with participation from all of AeroScout’s existing investors--Cisco, Greylock Partners, Intel Capital, Menlo Ventures, Pitango Venture Capital and Star Ventures. The Redwood City, CA-based company boasts over 600 global customers, including Adventist Health System and Yale-New Haven Hospital (healthcare is the biggest focus for Aeroscout).

BRINGITBringIt raised a $1.5 million round, led by Blumberg Capital, Seraph Group and Ergo Media, bringing the company's total funding to $2.8 million since its creation in 2008. The San Francisco-based startup is dedicated to helping social gaming companies like RockYou find monetization and increase user engagement.

H.BLOOM

H.BLOOM, a floral delivery service, raised a Battery Ventures-led $2.1 million Series A round, which, added to an earlier $1.1 million angel investment, brings the company's total funding to $3.2 million. The New York-based startup does not maintain any brick-and-mortar stores, offering an online-only subscription-based floral delivery service. The advantage is that H. BLOOM can sell professionally designed boutique-style arrangements for 70% off their normal retail price.

Rocket NinjaSocial gaming startup Rocket Ninja raised a $3.5 million first round of funding from a group of unnamed angels. The San Francisco-based startup just exited stealth mode and will begin releasing games to the Facebook platform, a highly competitive space (see: Zynga or EA).

SurveyMonkeySurveyMonkey raised $100 million in senior debt financing, led by Bank of America Merrill Lynch and SunTrust Robinson Humphrey.  Other banks who participated in the syndicate include JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Royal Bank of Canada, Webster Bank, N.A., and Zions First National Bank. The Palo Alto, Calif.-based startup was founded in 1999, serves surveys to 25 million people monthly, and counts every Fortune 100 company among its clients.

WrightspeedWrightspeed, developer of the world’s fastest street-legal electric vehicle, raised a $5 million Series A round led by a private investor. The San Jose, Calif-based company will use the funding to improve upon its Digital DriveSystem, an extended range hybrid electric drive system designed for practically every vehicle-type. Wrightspeed says vehicles with its technology installed will pay for itself in three years by saving customers on gas cost.

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