In the world of D.C. funding, the tide is rising quickly.
In 2016, our list of the top eight venture capital deals for D.C. startups fell between $20 million and $100 million. In 2017, that range for the top 15 fell between $20 million and $190 million, with big name investors swaying the top ranks.
Following a national trend of fewer, larger venture capital deals, we cut off this year's top D.C.-area term sheets at $30 million, with plenty of startups that topped that number.
After a record-shattering Q1 that had 61 deals at $651 million invested and a near-record Q3 with 50 deals totaling $452 million, the metro area is on pace for one of its best years ever for attracting venture capital.
The usual suspects were heavily involved again, including two busy funds from D.C.-based Revolution and Maryland's TEDCO, but several early-stage investors burst onto the scene in 2018 to raise and deploy capital in the region.
DC Inno collects daily funding news in our email newsletter, The Beat. To compile this list, we took a look through through data services like Pitchbook and Crunchbase, as well as our archives to find the top deals we reported on. Let’s take a look at the biggest venture capital deals of 2018.
(Editor’s note: Fundraising for VC funds and similar groups was left out of the rankings.)
CuriosityStream: $114M
Silver Spring-based CuriosityStream, launched by Discovery Communications founder John Hendricks in 2015, raised $114 million in a funding round disclosed in early December. The startup offers subscriptions starting at $3 per month to watch 2,000-plus shows and documentaries, including some original programming.
NextCure: $93M
Beltsville, Md. biopharmaceutical firm NextCure Inc. raised a $93 million Series B round of equity funding, led by Asian firms Hillhouse Capital Management and Quan Capital. Eli Lilly and Co., an Indianapolis-based pharmaceutical giant, invested $15 million in the round as part of a partnership with NextCure announced in early November. The company said the funds will be primarily used to support clinical development for two lead drug candidates used for cancer therapy.
Optoro: $75M
Optoro, a D.C.-based provider of returns optimization software, closed a $75 million equity funding round in July – its largest yet. The round was led by Franklin Templeton and included financing from D.C.-based Revolution Growth, Generation Investment Management and Tenfore Holdings. It brought the firm’s total capital raised to $200 million, which includes investments from UPS and Maryland Venture Fund, to name a few. Over the past two years, the volume of goods routed by the software platform has grown more than fivefold, according to the company, and it lists Groupon, BJ’s, Staples and Target as clients.
Virtru: $38M
Virtru complemented its move to a new D.C. office this summer by hauling in a $38 million Series B funding round led by Iconiq Capital. Founded by John Ackerly and his brother Will, a former NSA security engineer, the 5-year-old company’s platform encrypts sensitive data, such as regulated content and intellectual property, even as it is shared inside and outside an organization. The company said at the time of the raise that it had 8,000 customers and had tripled revenue in the last year.
Neuraly: $36M
Johns Hopkins School of Medicine-born biotech startup Neuraly raised $36 million in Series A financing as it plots trials for its first drug candidate, aimed at helping patients with Parkinson's. Octave Life Sciences and Maryland Venture Fund participated in the round, among other international investors. The company, founded in 2015, planned to begin its first clinical trials this year.
Cava: $33M
Rockville, Md.-based Mediterranean restaurant chain Cava kept its growth spurt alive with a funding round of at least $33 million, which it reported in May. Previous funding rounds included local funds Revolution Growth of D.C. and SWaN & Legend Venture Partners of Leesburg, and totaled $96 million before the most recent deal. It also acquired Plano, Texas-based Zoe's Kitchen for about $300 million in August.
OpenLegacy: $30M
Reston, Va. and Israel-based OpenLegacy, a maker of API integration tools for enterprise applications, in late November announced the close of a $30 million funding round. The deal was led by led by Silverhorn Investment Advisors and included CommerzVentures, C. Entrepreneurs and O.G. Tech Ventures. It was founded in 2013 and had previously raised a total of $11 million in capital.
Framebridge: $30M
Four-year-old D.C. company Framebridge closed on a $30 million Series C funding round led by T. Rowe Price and including locally based Revolution, an existing investor. The startup’s online service allows users to upload photos that are framed and shipped out. The new funding will go toward expanding manufacturing capabilities and refining the delivery process.
