Unicorn – a coveted term for startups as they reach the billion-dollar valuation or more. If there’s any industry that’s getting the most companies in the unicorn club, it’d be SaaS. In fact, within the past week itself, we’ve two to three new members which show the increased attention this segment is getting. Of course, the past week was also jam-packed with acquisitions, new launches, and more. So, without any further delay, here’s everything you need to know about in the world of SaaS this week.
Related read: Indian SaaS unicorns
Table of Contents
News of the week
Restaurant software provider Toast prepares for IPO
The 10-year old Toast will go public soon via a SPAC (special purpose acquisition company) route with a valuation of as much as $20billion, as per a report. Toast provides POS and order management systems to restaurants.
Autodesk to acquire Innovyze, Inc. for $1billion
Autodesk has made its biggest acquisition of all time with Innovyze. The company provides water infrastructure modeling and simulation tech, and the deal has been closed at $1billion. Innovyze’s software will be combined with Autodesk’s software suite.
Australia’s Canva buys European design startups to fuel growth
One of the most popular graphics design software, Canva has purchased two European startups. The first is Kaleido.ai, a visual AI-based tool that lets one instantly remove background from a photo or video. Canva has also acquired Smartmockups that allow one to quickly create mockups for t-shirts, mugs, and more.
VCs are chasing Hopin upwards of $5-6billion valuation
While Zoom has been a darling of the stock market amidst the pandemic, it seems virtual event software Hopin is also raking in benefits of work from home environment. After a massive funding round of $125million just three months back, reports suggest that the company is in talks to raise $400million, which could impute a valuation of $5 to 6billion.
Scoop: Razorpay looks at $2billion valuation in new funding round
Popularly referred to as India’s answer to Stripe, Razorpay is in fundraising talks with its existing investors such as GIC, Tiger Global, Sequoia Capital. As per reports, its valuation could double to $2billion after its last funding round in October 2020, which made it a unicorn.
Exclusive: SaaS firm Chargebee guns for unicorn status with $1.4billion valuation in fundraise
Subscription management software Chargebee is expected to be the newest Indian SaaS startup to join the unicorn bandwagon. Its upcoming funding round is expected to be led by a US-based investor, valuing it at $1.4billion.
Salesforce beats Q4 estimates, Slack adds record number of paid customers
CRM pioneer Salesforce beat the analyst expectations with its Q4 results. Slack, the company it acquired in December 2020, also announced new paid users. Salesforce got a revenue of $5.82billion, while the revenue for the entire fiscal year was $21.25billion – up 24 percent y-o-y.
SaaS funding
Newsela, the replacement for textbooks, raises $100million and becomes a unicorn
Newsela is a SaaS platform for offering instructional material for K-12 students. As part of its Series D round, it has managed to raise $100million led by Franklin Templeton.
Terminus raises $90million to grow its B2B marketing platform, now valued at around $400million
Terminus offers an integrated platform for sales and marketing with the ABM (account based marketing) approach. It has now raised $90million Series C round at a valuation of $400million, led by Great Hill Partners.
China’s Black Lake raises $77million to give factories a digital upgrade
Black Lake is unique in more ways than one – not only it’s a Chinese company, but it also differs from most SaaS companies as it’s aiming to solve the problems of factory workers. It offers software that lets factory workers log their daily tasks and managers can oversee the status. It has now raised $77million as part of Series C round led Temasek.
Ageras offers accountancy software as well as a marketplace to find accountants. It’s raised $73million from a single investor, Lugard Road Capital, which reportedly values the company at $244million.
Creatio looks to go big with low-code after $68million raise
Creatio, a low-code customer relationship and process management company, has raised its first funding in the form of $68million growth equity led by Volition Capital. The funding amount will be used to expand its partner ecosystem internationally.
Otter.ai raises $50million for AI transcription
Leading transcription service Otter.ai has closed a $50million funding round. Led by Spectrum Equity, the Series C round includes $10million in convertible notes. The funds will be used for hiring across teams.
Shippo raises $45million more at $495million valuation as e-commerce booms
Shipping-related software and services provider Shippo has nabbed a $45million Series D funding. The round values the startup at $495million and was led by D1 Capital.
Must reads
Focus on your first 10 systems, not just your first 10 hires
Why SaaS companies are giving away their products – and why that’s here to stay
Listen to
Okta CEO Todd McKinnon on how to approach effective decision-making in leadership, when is the right time to hire Recruiters and heads of people, and more
Okta has been one of the most successful SaaS companies, and has also created the category of identity and access management. In this podcast, its CEO Todd McKinnon shares his journey, what led him to launch Okta, his strategy on hiring, how to effectively manage the board and wall street expectations after going public.
A data-driven approach to SaaS sales management – with Pete Kazanjy
Atrium is a sales management tool that uses data to offer smart insights. In this episode, Atrium’s co-founder Peter Kazanjy shares how data can be used by sales leaders and managers to improve the team performance.
Watch
SaaS landing pages (best and worst practices)
Landing pages can make or break a SaaS business. In this video, the host TK Kader shares his learnings on what one should and shouldn’t do for creating landing pages with things like simple and clear CTA, don’t have long scrolls, and communicate clear benefits, among others.
