Investors including NEA, RRE, Hearst, SoftBank and Lerer Ventures are contributing to a $19.3 million (£11.9 milliion) fundraising effort for BuzzFeed.
BuzzFeed, a web-based social publisher located in the US, has also secured the services of entrepreneurs Michael and Kass Lazerow, who are set to join as individual backers.
The duo co-founded social media management platform Buddy Media, which was then sold to Salesforce for $689 million in 2012.
The funding round is the latest in a long line of large investment closes. Back in July 2008 BuzzFeed kicked off its fundraising efforts by netting $3.5 million. It then went on to raise $8 million in May 2010 and $15.5 in January 2012.
The $19.3 million it has now raised will be used to further mobile development, expand geographically and grow its editorial team.
As well as investing in video content, BuzzFeed is also planning to open a London office in the next year.
According to the publisher, in December it passed 40 million unique monthly visitors by driving growth through Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest. It also claims to have grown its revenue threefold during 2012 by way of content-driven advertising.
More social fundraisings:
- Octopus invests in social media business
- Socialbakers backs up fundraising with deal
- London-based Plumbee nets VC funds
Jonah Perretti, founder and CEO of BuzzFeed, says, ‘We have the senior management board, and investors we need to build the next great media company: social native, tech-enabled, with massive scale.
‘We are all focused on that big goal and raised this capital to move even faster.’
BuzzFeed recently hired Jeff Greenspan from Facebook as its chief creative officer to create what it calls a ‘shareable branded content’ with brands such as Virgin Mobile, Microsoft and Pepsi to distribute across the web using the company’s technology.
Patrick Kerins, general partner at NEA, comments, ‘We couldn’t be more excited to build the defining media company for the social era with Jonah and the team.’
Kerins, who is set to join the company’s board, also adds, ‘We think BuzzFeed will be one of the great media companies of the next decade.’
