New funding by Bain, Bessemer, Sequoia, and Greylock values the professional-networking site north of $1 billion—and big plans are afootLinkedIn is joining the Web 2.0 high rollers' club. The professional networking site, home to some 23 million affluent users who sign up to find jobs, hire talent, and connect on projects, is about to become one of the select few social-media companies to attain a valuation of more than $1 billion.
On June 17, LinkedIn announced a $53 million round of funding led by Boston's Bain Capital Ventures. LinkedIn's previous investors, Bessemer Venture Partners, Sequoia Capital, and Greylock Partners, were also part of the latest round. The companies are acquiring a 5% stake that values LinkedIn at $1.015 billion.
The investment represents a vote of confidence in one of the rare Internet companies introduced in recent years that relies on user-generated content but has also come up with a sustainable way to make money. On track to generate $100 million in sales this year, LinkedIn is experiencing a growth surge. It logged 7.7 million unique viewers in May, a 146% increase from a year ago, according to a June 17 report by market researcher Nielsen Online. Among LinkedIn's peer group, the only companies to have attained as high a valuation are YouTube, which was purchased by Google (GOOG) for $1.65 billion in 2006, and Facebook, valued at $15 billion by a $240 million investment by Microsoft (MSFT).
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