Index Ventures has raised €400 million ($550 million) for its seventh fund, which it will use to invest in early-stage companies in Europe, the US, and Israel, as it has done before. Index Ventures' investments include Facebook Inc. (Nasdaq: FB) and Skype.
Index Ventures partner Saul Klein, a well-known figure in the Israeli start-up scene, said that in the past 12 months, the firm had made seven exits of portfolio companies with values of over $1 billion, including King Digital Entertainment plc (NYSE: KING), the creator of Candy Crush. "This is what we are seeking with the new fund; to invest in companies with the potential of becoming billion-dollar companies and be global leaders in their fields. The $1 billion threshold is the new threshold that American, European, and Israeli entrepreneurs are striving for. Our goal is to be involved with these entrepreneurs," he said.
Index Ventures' portfolio includes Dropbox, Etsy, Flipboard, and SoundCloud. It says that the aggregate revenue of its portfolio companies was $8.2 billion in 2013, 117% more than in 2012.
In Israel, Index Ventures saw one exit in the past 12 months - Soluto Ltd., which was sold in late 2013 for $130 million. It also invested in two late-stage companies that are candidates for IPOs soon: Outbrain Inc. and MyHeritage Ltd. Last year, it led the $8 million financing round by cyber company Lacoon Mobile Security Ltd.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on June 11, 2014
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