Can You Feel the Bubble Spray? Groupon's Founders Smartly Take the Money and Run
TechCrunch is now reporting that Groupon is on the verge of closing a $130 million Series C round at a stunning $1.35 billion valuation. According to TC’s source, Digital Sky Technologies, the same Russian holding company that’s become a major stakeholder in Facebook, is leading the round with participation from Battery Ventures and, presumably, Accel Partners, which led the company’s $30 million Series B just five months ago. The best part about this story? According to TC, Groupon isn’t raising the money for operations because it’s right now making money “hand over fist.” Instead, Groupon is taking the money to cash out insiders. If we were talking about twentysomethings without enough capital to buy themselves penthouse apartments, I could understand their rationale. But Groupon’s insiders are fabulously wealthy.
