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Business website provider Squarespace Inc. is raising about $200 million in fresh capital as part of a funding round set to value it at an impressive $1.7 billion.
That’s according to a Bloomberg report published this morning, which cited an anonymous source familiar with the deal. The investment comes courtesy of General Atlantic, a New York-based private equity firm that has previously led a $40 million round into Squarespace three years ago.
The biggest portion of the capital will reportedly go toward buying out some of the company’s other stakeholders. Anton Levy, the head of General Atlantic’s Internet and technology group, was quoted as saying that “if anything, we actually would have been interested in buying more.” Whatever percentage of the investment is left over should give Squarespace a helpful boost going into 2018.
The company has risen to prominence in the tech industry by simplifying the task of building an online presence for businesses and individuals. Squarespace provides the ability to buy a domain name, set up a site using ready-made templates and customize the layout all in one platform. It also offers a selection of value-added tools including a storefront builder for online retailers.
Squarespace plans to double down on this segment going forward. Chief Executive Officer Anthony Casalena told Bloomberg that the focus will be on making it easier for users to sell products via their websites. About 100,000 out of the company’s 2 million paying customers currently have some sort of e-commerce tool installed.
Squarespace also intends to establish a stronger presence outside the U.S. The company’s ambitious expansion efforts seem to be paying off: It continues to attract new users 14 years after launch.
Casalena claimed that Squarespace has seen revenues rise 50 percent in the past 12 months to about $300 million. Plus, it’s profitable, which should put the provider in a strong position to hit the stock market when it eventually decides to file for an initial public offering. MongoDB Inc., ForeScout Technologies Inc. and several other tech firms launched successful IPOs over recent quarters despite being in the red.
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