Belfast-based software supply chain management firm, Cloudsmith, has announced new $11m (£8.8m) funding round as it moves one step closer to IPO ambitions.
Cloudsmith helps businesses manage software on the cloud — removing the need to hire in-house support staff and cutting down on expenses.
The company, founded in 2016 by former New York Stock Exchange developers Alan Carson and Lee Skillen, will use the funds raised to scale up its operations as it continues to serve a growing global client base.
From its beginnings in Belfast the company has grown to have a global presence and clients including software companies such as Shopify, PagerDuty, Font Awesome, HP and Enterprise DB.
In 2021 Cloudsmith raised $15m (£11m) enabling the company to hire 60 new employees and implement plans to boost its presence in the United States.
And in 2019, the company raised £2.1m in seed funding led by Frontline Ventures and co-investors MMC Ventures and Techstart Ventures through its Invest NI fund Techstart.
The announcement of this latest funding round follows a change in leadership with the appointment of Glenn Weinstein.
Mr Weinstein took over as chief executive of the company on August 21, after co-founder Alan Carson stepped down into the role of chief technology officer.
Mr Weinstein, whose main base is Manhattan, is a veteran of the technology sector, but this is his first role as the chief executive at someone else’s company.
He was co-founder of Silicon Valley start-up Appirio, which he successfully exited after a decade with its sale to Wipro. More recently, he was chief customer officer at Twilio for four years.
Speaking about the new funding round, Mr Weinstein said: “Despite economic headwinds and a slow venture capital funding market, this announcement reaffirms the confidence our investors have in Cloudsmith. We’ve been successfully disrupting and reinventing the software supply chain market.
“This fresh infusion of capital also comes as industry demand for secure and reliable software supply chain solutions is surging. Cybersecurity attacks of increasing severity have become more frequent, and threaten reputational damage, data exfiltration and IP theft.”
Cloudsmith’s cloud-native software supply chain management platform is designed to meet the needs of software teams building for internal use or distributing software packages to the market.
It provides a comprehensive suite of storage, management, and distribution solutions, allowing developers and companies to streamline and control their software supply chain, improve collaboration and accelerate product delivery.
Mr Weinstein added: “This funding will be used to enhance Cloudsmith’s unique cloud-native software supply chain solution, which is faster, more secure, and of higher value than the legacy on-premises vendors we’re displacing.”
He also highlighted the global nature of software development and the company’s client base.
“Cloudsmith is a great choice for companies with software teams distributed in remote locations, and whilst the US is our largest market, we continue to see increased demand from a range of countries including the UK, Germany and Australia.”
Mr Weinstein was brought on to accelerate Cloudsmith’s growth. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph in September following his appointment, he laid out ambitious plans for the future of the company.
He said: “It’s already a successful start-up in Belfast and has achieved a certain amount of customer success and financial success.
“But now we want to supercharge that growth.
"Ultimately what we’d hope is for an IPO and a market-leading position as an important technology company globally that will have been born and bred in Belfast.
“We took Series A funding in September 2021, so we’re venture-capital funded. Typically it needs several more rounds of venture capital investment prior to an IPO so we’re several years away from that being a serious consideration.
“But it’s a statement of intent to say that we would like to grow the company to a global scale where an IPO would be an appropriate next step. That just requires a greater investment and a more aggressive global go to market strategy to get Cloudsmith into the hands of companies everywhere.”
Cloudsmith’s has grown to be a leading Europe-based software company since it was founded in 2016.
Mr Weinstein said NI’s position and unique access to both the UK and EU markets mean that the company’s Belfast headquarters are of “strategic importance”.
“Belfast is a leading tech hub with a thriving digital economy. We see this renewed round of investment as a doubling down on Cloudsmith’s commitment to this vibrant city,” he said.
During the interview in September, Mr Weinstein also said that NI “was a place to go for top technology talent and a perfect place to expand your global footprint”.
Source: Belfast Telegraph (link opens in new window)