In covering the D.C. innovation economy comes the inevitable: funding news. Trust us, there's a lot of it floating around the D.C. metro area, and we cover it everyday in our daily newsletter, The Beat. Here's a roundup of all of the major funding news from the region in June:
Virtu Corp.
Virtu Corp., a D.C.-based encryption startup, raised $37.5 million in Series B funding, the Washington Business Journal reported in late May. Silicon Valley venture firm Iconiq Capital led the round.
WhyHotel
District-based startup WhyHotel announced that it raised $3.9 million in seed funding on June 7. The company offers an alternative lodging service that operates pop-up hotels in new multifamily luxury buildings. The round was led by real estate-focused VC firm Camber Creek, with participation from Revolution’s Rise of the Rest, Working Lab Capital, Vornado/Charles E. Smith and other real estate executives.
Hungry
- D.C. startup HUNGRY raised $1.5 million in funding, which it announced June 13, bringing its total to $4.5 million. The online marketplace connects offices to independent chefs, allowing the latter group to seamlessly enter the corporate catering market. It said it will use the capital to scale its operations and staff and expand into NYC and Philadelphia.
Pie Insurance
Pie Insurance announced that it was closing a $10 million round, the Washington Business Journal reported June 18. Founded in 2017, the budding insurance tech company just started selling premiums in partnership with Sirius International Insurance Group, and previously had raised $5 million in funding.
Inky Technology
Rockville, Md.-based Inky Technology Corp., an email security company, raised $5.6 million in Series A funding to increase its software’s analytics capabilities and expand sales and marketing. ClearSky Security led the round, with participation from Gula Tech Adventures and Blackstone as a strategic investor.
Vbrick
Herndon-based Vbrick – a modern enterprise video platform providing intelligently distributed live webcasting and on-demand video – raised just over $17 million in new equity financing. Morgan Stanley Expansion Capital led the round, with existing investors Acme Nova and Adams Capital also participating. Founded in 1998, the firm has raised $71.1 million in funding to date.
Quantum Xchange
Bethesda-based quantum-safe data protection provider Quantum Xchange left stealth mode with a $10 million Series A. New Technology Ventures led the round.
LeaseAccelerator
Reston-based LeaseAccelerator a provider of enterprise lease accounting software, raised a $30 million Series B from NYC-based private equity firm Insight Venture Partners. Founded in 2009, the company has been buoyed by the recent announcement that public companies will need to adopt a new set of lease accounting standards on Jan. 1, 2019.
Verodin
- McLean-based Verodin raised $20.7 million in funding from 14 investors. The round was disclosed in an SEC filing June 28. The company analyzes clients’ existing cybersecurity infrastructure for vulnerabilities and efficiency – essentially auditing its defense systems. The company moved its headquarters to Tysons in February, after reporting 400 percent growth in 2017.
