OfferUp continues to attract big-time investor interest.
And the latest backer of the Bellevue-based online marketplace is a fixture in the so-called “PayPal mafia.”
PayPal co-founder Max Levchin recently invested in OfferUp, part of an additional $11 million in funding that the Craigslist rival scored on top of the previously reported $119 million from two months ago.
Levchin brings a wealth of startup and payments experience to OfferUp, which is in the midst of expanding its popular app for buying and selling just about everything.
“Finding investors who are passionate about marketplaces and local commerce is critical to making OfferUp the best it can be,” OfferUp co-founder Nick Huzar told GeekWire. “Max is no exception to this rule. His insights and experience from founding some of the most respected brands in technology will be an incredible asset to OfferUp as we continue to grow and reimagine the way people buy and sell locally.”
Levchin is obviously excited about the opportunity to invest in one of the Seattle area’s only “unicorn” companies, those privately-held startups which possess a valuation of $1 billion or more.
33 million downloads and counting! TY @offerup @nickhuzar for the opportunity to invest. https://t.co/BPyFa2Td4Q
— Max Levchin (@mlevchin) November 17, 2016
As GeekWire reported earlier this year, OfferUp started testing mobile payments, giving buyers the option to pay sellers through its app without exchanging cash. Given Levchin’s experience at PayPal
A rival to Craigslist with a focus on mobile, OfferUp announced $119 million in funding in September and confirmed a valuation of more than $1 billion. The latest funding of $11 million brings total funding in the most recent round to $130 million. Other backers of the company include Andreessen Horowitz, Warburg Pincus,GGV Capital, Altimeter Capital, T. Rowe Price, Vy Capital and Coatue Management.
“We are the dominant player in the U.S., and we also have global ambitions,” Huzar told GeekWire two months ago when the funding round was announced. “We want to transform how people buy and sell locally across the world.”
With Levchin on the team, OfferUp is well poised to at least attack those goals.
