Slack raises $250m from SoftBank and others in uptick in tech start-up funding
Bengaluru — Software start-up Slack Technologies said it raised $250m from SoftBank Group and other investors in its latest funding round, boosting the company’s valuation to $5.1bn. The latest fund-raising, led by SoftBank through its giant Vision Fund and joined by Accel and other investors, lifted Slack’s total funds raised to $841m, the enterprise messaging operator said in an e-mailed statement. The fund provides resources that will help Slack to run as a cash-generating company and the raise will reduce its dependence on outside financing, Slack CEO Stewart Butterfield said. In July, sources had told Reuters that Slack was raising $250m in a new funding round led by SoftBank. The company in the past has raised money from venture firms including GGV Capital, Spark Capital and Thrive Capital, among others. Slack’s sizeable funding round reflects the trend of a growing number of $100m-plus cheques pouring into technology start-ups. In the second quarter this year, there were 34 v...
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