CBC News reports that Indiegogo, a popular crowdfunding platform, has managed to raise $40 million in fresh capital from US private equity. Among the investors who has committed capital to the startup are Institutional Venture Partners and KPCB, which was noted to have supported successful new media companies Netflix and Snapchat.
The report said the fundraising campaign is the second time for the company, who first turned to private equity for new funding in May 2012. On the other hand, Indiegogo Chief Executive Officer Slava Rubin does not discount the fact that it would be seeking funds from capital markets in the future.
He told CBC News, "Going to capital markets is something we may consider in the future, but not something we thought about right now. We're trying to focus on the individual and trying to make sure they have to best possible experience."
Since its launch, Indiegogo has been the go-to platform for alternative funding. A total of 200,000 campaigns has been launched on the company's platform, with about 10,000 are on the go in 70 to 100 countries, Rubin said.
Rubin added that the new funding will go towards shifting the flagship product's focus to mobile and also increase the company's global footprint.
Currently, the company has a Francophone version and has handled Canadian dollars. Rubin added that in the future, he is expecting the company to add more languages and provide other localized options. He also said that with the new capital, the platform's capability to diversify into various languages and currencies could now be developed.
"We want to improve the product so we can get more localized and make sure we have the best possible experience," Rubin said.
As a company focused on technology, going mobile is the new goal. Referring to the company's next step, he said, "We want to make sure we have a great experience on a mobilized website - iPhone apps, Android apps, or other new products that we'll be adding."
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