Boston-based big data marketing and analytics company DataXu raised $10 million on Wednesday in a round of venture capital, according to a form filed with the SEC. Additionally, the firm welcomed OpenView Venture Partners' investor Dan Demmer to its board of directors.
The equity comes from existing investors — a list that includes Atlas Venture, Thomvest Ventures, Flybridge Capital Partners and Menlo Ventures. Including Wednesday's funding, the firm has raised at total of $75 million. DataXu's last financing took place in February 2013, when it closed a round of growth capital worth $27 million.
Since its inception in 2007, DataXu has scaled tremendously, with growth that has culminated in hitting a high of $87 million in revenue last year – a sum worthy of securing the fifth spot on Inc.'s list of fastest growing companies.
The addition of Demmer serves as an encouraging sign that the company is preparing for its initial public offering in the next year or so. Demmer was the president of Endeca Technologies, a leading provider of unstructured data management and web commerce, where he raised revenues to $140 million and facilitated the company's acquisition of Oracle in 2011. He has more than 25 years of experience in leading companies to rapid revenue growth and IPO preparation.
If this Boston big data firm does indeed have its initial public offering in 2014 or early 2015, it will be in good company, alongside the likes of HubSpot and Wayfair.
