When SAP agreed to acquire Utah-based Qualtrics for $8 billion in 2018, it represented a big opportunity for the emerging venture hub to demonstrate its ability to build and grow companies toward billion-dollar exits.
While the business software provider eventually spun out of SAP and went public in January of this year, the VC landscape in the region has continued to expand rapidly in the past year, adding newly minted unicorns and numerous mega-deals in fintech and other sectors.
So far this year, investors have funneled more than $3.4 billion into Utah-based companies across 165 deals, nearly double the capital invested in all of 2020, according to PitchBook data.
The latest mega-deal came from Podium, which announced Monday that it has secured $201 million at a valuation of more than $3 billion in a round led by YC Continuity. The Lehi-based company offers interaction management software that helps local businesses manage online reviews, facilitate payments and more.
Durable Capital Partners, Arpex Capital, Accel, Album VC, IVP, Sapphire Ventures, Summit Partners and Sorenson Capital also participated in the funding. Podium was valued at $1.45 billion in April 2020, according to PitchBook data.
Digital banking startup Varo, which tops the list with a $510 million raise in September, became the first consumer fintech company to receive a national bank charter from the US in August last year. The Draper-based company offers no-fee checking and savings accounts through its mobile app.
Featured image by James O’Neil/Getty Images
