YCD Multimedia, which provides smart in-store digital media solutions, has closed a new financing package totaling $12 million.
The financing package includes new equity investment of $9 million, led by venture capitalists Pitango Venture Capital and Arts Alliance Digital Ventures and conversion of a $3 million bridge loan facility from Plenus to equity. This is the company's third financing round. The previous round, of $9 million, was in March 2008. The participants then were the same as in the current round. Since its founding, YCD has raised $25 million, including the current round.
Rami Kalish, managing general partner and co-founder of Pitango and Chairman of YCD Multimedia said, “Our continued support and investment in YCD reflects our confidence in their vision for the future of retailing and their solid momentum toward reaching that vision.”
The company say sit will use the funds to continue to build on its presence in the US and UK markets and to invest in its product roadmap, providing retailers with a turnkey platform to create, manage, distribute and optimize in-store digital media to help drive sales and profitability. “This new investment gives us the capital to support the initiatives we are undertaking with larger chains in the US and internationally,” said YCD CEO Barry Salzman.
YCD was founded in 1999 by Noam Levavi, who is company president, and Dani Zeevi, CTO. The company now has some 80 employees. Its aim is to enables retailer to realize rapid, measurable returns on investment from in-store digital media. Salzman joined YCD in October 2007. He left DoubleClick in 2002 to pursue a career as a professional photographer.
"It wasn't easy to raise the money, but the investors have faith and the very fact that we raised money demonstrates that," Zeevi said. "At first, we considered an external round. We presented figures to our investors, showed them that we have strong momentum, and so decided to go for an internal round."
The economic situation is not just affecting finance raising, but also the day-to-day management of the company. Zeevi: "All kinds of basic assumptions in our work change when you need all the time to plan a quarter or two quarters ahead and react to what's happening in the market.
"The situation affects finance raising, of course, because the venture capital firms are busy protecting their investments, and are sitting on the fence. To go for an investment round with new investors before the horizon clears is something very difficult."
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes.co.il - on June 23, 2009
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