PitchBook, a Seattle-based startup that conducts research about investments, is raising an investment of its own.
The 9-year-old company today announced $10 million in financing from existing investor Morningstar Inc., bringing total funding up to $14.25 million.
This is a Series B round for PitchBook, which raised its only other financing in 2009 after a $4.25 million investment from Morningstar and others.
PitchBook sells research and data — along with the tools to access this information — for people interested in private equity, venture capital deals, and M&A transactions. Media outlets, including GeekWire, also cite PitchBook data in stories related to investment dollars. In total, the company counts 1,400 customers, and in 2015 alone, it brought on 713 new clients.
After the latest investment round, the company is now valued at $160 million — according to, of course, PitchBook. Sales rose by 68 percent in 2015 to $31 million annually, the company noted.
“Our growth stems from the continued focus on providing our customers with the best data, technology, and service in the industry,” PitchBook CEO John Gabbert said in a statement. “We believe that when our customers have access to unparalleled private market information, they are able to find more opportunities and make better, data-informed decisions. We’re proud to have the continued support of Morningstar, a trusted provider of investment research and data.”
The company now employs 500 — 121 of which came on board last year — and plans to use the fresh funding to hire more than 100 employees in 2016. It moved into a new Seattle headquarters this past September and has offices in New York City and London.
Rumors of a potential sale surfaced about 15 months ago, but Gabbert denied those reports, saying that he would sell PitchBook if a company approached with a “ridiculous price.”
CB Insights, a New York-based provider of investment data about the venture capital industry, raised $10 million last fall, and Mattermark, a Silicon Valley startup that tracks information about venture-backed companies, raised $6.5 million in December 2014. A number of other services, including those from the National Venture Capital Association and Crunchbase, are used to track venture capital activity.
The investment in PitchBook follows another $10 million round in a Seattle area company. On Tuesday, Moz, a maker of software for marketing professionals, raised $10 million at a $120 million valuation.
