Thursday, May 11, 2017Roofstock Launches Real Estate Marketplace In Los AngelesRoofstock, a startup which operates an online marketplace that lets investors purchase homes online as investments, has launched in Los Angeles, the company said on Thursday. The Silicon Valley startup, based in Oakland, says it allows investors to purchase single-family, rental homes. The company said Los Angeles is its 14th market. The company's marketplace offers inspections, valuation, title reports, and information on tenants and local property managers to its users. Roofstock called the Lo (More info...)
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Social Reality Becomes SRAXLos Angeles-based advertising technology tools developer Social Reality has rebranded itself as SRAX, the company said on thursday. The company said the new branding "is designed to reflect the breadth and depth of the advertising technology company's tools offered to digital marketers and content owners." SRAX's CEO and Chairman is Chris Miglino. SRAX is also the company's symbol on the NASDAQ Capital Market.
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Tech Coast Angels: Best Q1 Ever For Deals, DollarsIrvine-based angel investment group Tech Coast Angels said this morning that it has had it's best Q1 ever, both in terms of dollars and total deals. According to the TCA, it invested $3.8M in total across 17 deals, for the quarter ending March 31st, 2017. The TCA said that 99 percent of the investment dollars were in Southern California, and all but one of the investments were early stage funding, including seed equity, Series A, or bridge to Series A funding. The company also disclosed nine new (More info...)
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Miva Gets Growth Capital InjectionSan Diego-based Miva, the developer of e-commerce shopping cart software, has received a growth capital funding from private equity investor Bison Capital Partners, the companies said this week. Size of the minority investment was not announced. Miva said that the investment is the first time in its history that it has accepted growth capital funding. Miva will be led by new CEO Rick Wilson, who took over from former CEO Russ Carroll in April; Wilson had been President and COO sine 2009. Carroll (More info...)
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Kingston Backs PCI-Express Data Center Technology StartupFountain Valley-based Kingston Technology is one of the backers of a company developing adaptable, datacenter computing technology based on PCI-express fabrics. Liqid said Wednesday that it has raised $10M in a Series A funding, in a round from Market Hill Capital, and also included Phison Electronics Corporation. The company said its prior seed investment came from Kingston Technology, Phison Electronics, ABR Capital Management and DH Capital, and that it has now raised $20M in total. Liqid is (More info...)
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TestEquity Sold By Private Equity OwnerMoorpark, California-based TestEquity, a distributor of electronic test and measurement equipment as well as laboratory and production supplies, has been sold by private equity investor First Atlantic Capital Ltd., to another private equity buyer, LKCM Headwater Investments. Financial details of the sale were not disclosed. First Atlantic Capital Ltd. acquired TestEquity in 2012.
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Qualcomm Ventures Gets Quick Exit At Owlchemy LabsQualcomm Ventures, the venture arm of San Diego-based Qualcomm, has scored a quick exit out of its venture portfolio. Owlchemy Labs, developer of such virtual reality games as Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-ality, has been acquired by Google, the two announced on Wednesday. Financial details of the buy were not announced, but Owlchemy Labs had only raised $5M, in a funding in August of 2016. Qualcomm Ventures was a prominent backer of Owlchemy, along with HTC, The VR Fund, Colopl VR Fund, Capital (More info...)
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AppOnboard Gets $4M For App DemosLos Angeles-based AppOnboard, a startup led by AdColony founding CEO Jonathan Zweig, announced Wednesday that it has raised $4M in a funding round. The round came from Troy Capital Partners, London Venture Partners, Ophir CG, Abstract VC, 500 Startups, angel Eytan Elbaz (Google Adsense), and others. AppOnboard has developed software to provide the ability to create immersive, mobile app demos for users before they download an app, according to the startup. The company says its software ia alread (More info...)
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Snap Hammered After Reporting First Quarter ResultsNewly public tech startup Snap Inc. was hammered on the markets on Wednesday, after reporting $2.2 billion of losses on $149.65M in revenues for its quarter ended March 31, 2017. The terse earnings report was the first for the company as a publicly traded company. Snap is now trading as SNAP on the NYSE. SNAP dropped 21 percent on Wednesday. Most of the $2.2 billion in losses was attributed to options which vested in the IPO, and which will be paid out quarterly--but which will be paid out over (More info...)
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UBTECH Sets Up North American HQ In LAUBTECH Robotics, a developer of robots and robot toys used for the STEM- (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), entertainment, and other markets, said on Wednesday that it has opened up a new, North American headquarters in downtown Los Angeles. The company said it is expanding its headquarters and leadership team, with a sales, marketing and support team in the locaiton. UBTECH did not say how many it plans to hire at the location. As part of the expansion, the company said it has named Susa (More info...)
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Inseego Gets $20M Loan From Soros, Loses CFOSan Diego-based Inseego, the company until recently known as Novatel Wireless, has received a $20M credit agreement from Lakestar Semi, a private investment fund managed by Soros Fund Management. Terms of the loan--which has a maturity date of May 8, 2018--were not announced. Inseego said the funding will allow it to pursue its near-term objectives, inlcuding sale of its MiFi business and investment in its Ctrack and Inseego North America businesses. In an unrelated move, Inseego said its CFO, (More info...)
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AmpliPhi Biosciences Nets $9.1M From IPOSan Diego-based AmpliPhy Biosciences, a developer of therapies for treating drug-resistant bacterial infections using bacteriophage technology, said it raised $9.1M for the company in its IPO. The company trades as APHB on the NYSE Small Cap Market. The $9.1M was after deducting the underwriting discount and commissions and estimated offering expenses payable by AmpliPhi, according to the company. The company's IPO offering was run by Rodman & Renshaw.
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