Daily funding roundup - June 5, 2015

Supercell closed $100M; Springbot raised $6M; The Influential Network landed $1.5M

• A Los Angeles-based startup, The Influential Network which specializes in matching handpicked influencers with a handful of brands, landed its first $1.5 million through a matchmaking funding site. The funding came after Influential posted its request on Flash Funders, an online funding platform that matches investors with companies. The seed round was led by Europlay Capital Advisors, which had also been a seed investor in Skype.
  
  

• Singapore-based fintech company Mesitis raised an US$3 million in a series A funding round. The investment came entirely from private parties, with the majority being “private investors comprising former and current corporate CEOs/chairpersons and entrepreneurs from Southeast Asia,” who are also its customers, according to Nilanshuk Haldar, the company’s chief product officer. Three Mesitis team members also participated in the round, on the same terms as the other investors. “Ι consider this as a great vote of confidence in us,” Tanmai Sharma, founder and CEO of Mesitis, said in a statement.
  
  

• Springbot, an eCommerce marketing platform designed for small to mid-sized online businesses, landed $6 million in their latest round of funding. The financing was led by TTV Capital and included increased participation by existing investors such as TechOperators as well as contribution from new investor Silicon Valley Bank. With this investment, the company announced that Mark Johnson, former vice chairman of CheckFree and current partner at TTV Capital, will join Springbot’s board of directors. Johnson brings a wealth of eCommerce and FinTech experience to fast-growing Springbot. Current board members include Dave Gould, partner at TechOperators, Allen Nance, partner at TechSquare Labs and Brooks Robinson, CEO and co-founder of Springbot.
  
  

• Speexx, a Munich, Germany-based provider of cloud-based communication and language skills training for large organizations, raised $5 million in Series A funding. Backers included Ventech and Alto Invest. The company intends to use funds to continue enhancing its product and service portfolio and extend its global presence. Led by Jörg Koberling, CEO and Founder, Speexx provides large organisations with cloud-based online language learning solutions for Business English, Spanish, German, Italian and French with ongoing support in 13 languages. It integrates online business communication skills training, mobile and social learning, expert coaches located throughout the world and personalized live online activities into its learning experience.
  
  

• Chinese search giant Baidu took another step into the world of transportation this week as the lead investor in the series A funding round of 16WiFi. The round of “over RMB 100 million” (US$16 million) was also funded by China’s United Electronics Co. (not to be confused with a US-based company of the same name). 16WiFi is a hardware interface and mobile app that integrate to bring wifi service to China’s public transit systems. A hardware dongle on the bus itself captures 3G and 4G network service from China’s telecoms and converts that into a wifi signal which users can then access by logging in through 16WiFi’s client mobile app.
  
  

• Chinese digital television advertising network on mass transport VisionChina signed a definitive equity subscription agreement for USD 11.5 million of Series A equity for Shenzhen Qianhai VisionChina Mobile Interactive (Qianhai Mobile). Qianhai Mobile is a VisionChina affiliate engaged in the research, development and operation of mass transit Wi-Fi networks and the provision of mobile internet value-added services across the country. The transaction was led by Beijing Baidu Netcom Science Technology, a Baidu affiliate, and also included private equity investors Guangdong Zhongke Baiyun New Industry Venture Investment, and Dongguan Zhongke Zhongguang Venture Investment. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions.
  
  

• Clash of Clans developer Supercell closed an $100 million funding round and now boasts a valuation of $800 million. Venture Partners, Atomico and Index Ventures are the reported investors with 15 per cent to 20 per cent of the company sold. "We simply will not comment on market rumours, we've never really done that and will not do that now."" Supercell spokesperson Heini Vesander told Techcrunch, who broke the story, but GamesBeat reported it had verified the story with "multiple sources at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco."
  
  

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