While we’re primarily focused on Cincinnati's innovation economy, we also have our eyes on all of the startup and tech activity happening throughout the entire Midwest. Here are the major tech fundings, acquisitions, mergers, moves and IPOs that went down in the region in October. See all Midwest Reports here.
10/3: Chicago-based Envoy Global, a provider of immigration services, raised a $21 million Series C from Catalyst Investors, with participation from General Catalyst.
10/5: Chicago-based ThinkCERCA, a personalized literacy platform that helps educators teach critical thinking skills through argumentative writing, raised a $10 million Series B from Plum Alley Investments, Great Oak Venture Partners, Amicus Capital, Scott Cook and Signe Ostby.
10/5: Chicago-based PartySlate, a digital platform for party hosts, raised a $1.9 million round of funding from Hyde Park Venture Partners, with participation from Hyde Park Angels, InvestHER Ventures, Jump Investors, Wavemaker Partners and Halogen Ventures.
10/5: Cleveland, Ohio-based Align Capital Partners, a growth-oriented private equity firm, raised over $300 million for its debut fund (which has a target of $326 million), according to an SEC filing.
10:6: Akron, Ohio-based DRB, a provider of tech-enabled devices and software solutions to the car wash industry, was acquired by private equity firm New Mountain Capital. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
10/7: Chicago-based Level Ex, a med tech company creating professional video games for physicians, raised a $11 million Series A from 4490 Ventures, with participation from JAZZ Venture Partners and Pritzker Group Venture Capital.
10/10: Northbrook, Illinois-based Impossible Objects, a provider of 3D printing technology, raised a $6.4 million Series A from OCA Ventures, with participation from IDEA Fund Partners, Mason Avenue Investments, Huizenga Capital Management and Inflection Equity Partners.
10/11: Chicago-based Neurensic, LLC, a provider of AI software for the trading, compliance, surveillance and banking industries, has been acquired by Trading Technologies. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
10/12: Indianapolis-based 250ok, a leading email analytics and deliverability platform, raised a $2.6 million Series A from Arthur Ventures.
10/12: Minneapolis-based Jamf, an enterprise management platform for Apple operating systems, has been acquired by private equity firm Vista Equity Partners. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
10/13: Cincinnati-based Workflex, a provider of workforce engagement solutions, has been acquired by Nice, an Israel-based company specializing in telephone voice recording, data security, and surveillance. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
10/18: Ann Arbor-based Duo Security, a cybersecurity SaaS company, raised a $70 million Series D from Meritech Capital Partners and Lead Edge Capital, with participation from Geodesic Capital, Index Ventures, Workday, Redpoint Ventures and True Ventures.
10/20: Troy Michigan-based Altair Engineering, a product design and development, engineering software and cloud computing software company, announced that it plans to raise $144 million in an initial public offering and will list on the Nasdaq as "ALTR."
10/23: Minneapolis-based Oliver Cabell, a startup selling bags and other accessories, raised $1.2 million in funding and plans to expand into the shoe business.
10/24: Minnetonka-based Digi International, a provider of IoT products and services, acquired Boston-based TempAlert, a provider of automated, real-time temperature monitoring and task management solutions for the healthcare, industrial and foodservice industries, for $45 million.
10/25: Grand Rapids-based Blue Medora, a provider of cloud systems management solutions, raised $8 million in funding from First Analysis.
10/26: Chicago-based CardX, a B2B fintech and credit card startup, raised $2.1 million in funding from NXGEN International.
10/26: Wichita-based CURO, an omni-channel loan platform serving underbanked consumers, filed for a $100 million initial public offering and will trade on the NYSE as CURO.
10/27: Illinois-based GTreasury, a provider of treasury management systems, raised $42 million from Mainsail Partners.
10/28: According to the Wall Street Journal, Pritzker Group Private Capital is targeting $1.5 billion for a new private equity fund.
10/29: Ankeny, Iowa-based MakuSafe, a maker of wearable technology to help identify, predict, and prevent risk in workplace environments, raised $1.25 million in funding.
10/29: Cincinnati-based Legacy Acquisition, a blank check company from former P&G executives that's targeting a CPG acquisition, announced plans to raise $300 million in an initial public offering.
10/29: Pittsburgh-based JazzHR, a provider of recruiting solutions for small and medium-sized enterprises, raised $6.6 million in new funding from Volition Capital, with participation from Birchmere Ventures and Rincon Venture Partners.
10/30: Overland Park, Kansas-based Farmobile, a provider of data and analytics for the agriculture industry, raised an $18.1 million Series B from Anterra Capital and AmTrust Agricultural Insurance Services.
10/30: Columbus-based Beam Dental, a provider of dental benefits for small and medium-sized businesses, raised a $5.5 million Series B from Lewis & Clark Ventures, with participation from Drive Capital.
10/30: Chicago-based Payline Data Services, a full-service payment solutions provider, has been acquired by Pittsburgh-based Pineapple Payments. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
(Image via Creative Commons)
