VCJ Staff

Adarza BioSystems closes $5 mln Series B

Adarza BioSystems Inc closed a $5 million Series B financing round led by Cultivation Capital, Lewis and Clark Ventures and Siemens' venture capital unit. Adarza, which has operations in Rochester, New York and St. Louis, Missouri, is a developer of label-free biosensor assays and instruments.

venBio collects $288 mln toward second venture fund

Healthcare investment firm venBio Partners LLC raised $288 million from 22 LPs toward a $303 million venture fund, according to an SEC filing.

VC-backed Jumio files for bankruptcy, to sell assets to investor Eduardo Saverin

Jumio Inc, an identity management and credentials company based in Palo Alto, California, has commenced voluntary Chapter 11 proceedings in the U.S. The company agreed to sell its assets to Jumio Acquisition LLC, an entity formed by Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin, who was an early investor in Jumio. Saverin will also provide Jumio with $3.7 million to support the company’s operations during the sale process. Jumio has previously raised funding from Andreessen Horowitz and others.

IP Group leads $15 mln investment in Mirriad Advertising

Mirriad Advertising Ltd, a video advertising company based in London, raised $15 million in a funding round led by IP Group PLC with participation from Parkwalk Funds and Unilever Ventures, the investment arm of Unilever.

Mattermark raises $7.3 mln Series B, valuing company at $42 mln

Mattermark, a data intelligence service for startups and investors, raised $7.3 million in a Series B funding round that values the company at $42 million. Foundry Group led the round with participation from existing investors. The investment brings the company's total funding to $18.4 million. Based in San Francisco, Mattermark raised $6.5 million in Series A funding in December 2014.

VCs on the Move Mar 20, 2016

Recap of recent personnel moves at OpenView and other venture firms

VC-backed Storefront shuts down

Storefront, a marketplace that helps merchants find and rent retail space, shut down Thursday, the company announced on its website. Spark Capital led a $7.3 million Series A funding round for Storefront in April 2014. Investors include Mohr Davidow Ventures, Great Oaks Venture Capital, 500 Startups and former Citigroup Chief Executive Vikram Pandit, among others.

WeWork buys Welkio

Shared-office-space startup WeWork acquired Welkio, a visitor sign-in system for offices, the company said Friday in a blog post. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Based in San Luis Obispo, California, Welkio was created in 2014 during a company hackathon at mobile agency Hathaway. WeWork recently raised about $430 million at a $16 billion valuation in a funding round led by private equity firm Hony Capital Ltd, reported the Wall Street Journal.

German travel startup Distribusion raises $6.77 mln

Business-to-business travel startup Distribusion Technologies raised 6 million euros ($6.77 million) in funding from Northzone, Creandum, HR Ventures and returning investor Frühphasenfonds Brandenburg. Based in Berlin, Germany, Distribusion's technology enables intercity bus operators to partner with travel resellers.

Omidyar Network leads $1.6 mln seed round for Tinkergarten

Omidyar Network, a philanthropic investment firm started by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar, led a $1.6 million seed financing round for Tinkergarten, a provider of outdoor early childhood education. Other investors in the round include Blue {Seed} Collective, City Light Capital, 500 Startups and Outbound Ventures.