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Finance / Funding / Venture capital

Money Moves: Meet the two newest venture funds in the DMV

Plus, roadside assistance app Urgently raises $75 million in debt financing, and Virginia Venture Partners has two new investments.

Urgently SVP Alan Holman on location. (Courtesy photo)

Money Moves is a column where we chart the funding raises of tech companies across the region. Have a tip? Email us at dc@technical.ly.


NoVa mobility tech company Urgently just got a leg up in the transportation space. Late last month, the Vienna, Virginia roadside assistance app developer secured up to $75 million in debt financing from Highbridge Capital Management, Onex Credit and Whitebox Advisors.

On top of the debt financing, current partner Structural Capital increased its existing debt with the company to $17.5 million. According to Urgently, the funding will support the company’s growth, new product development and strengthen its service provider solutions. It will also be looking to aggressively expand its footprint in the US market.

“[This] investment, along with Structural Capital’s continued support, is indicative of the confidence that exists among leading financial, automotive, mobility and aftermarket strategic investors in our mission to deliver exceptional assistance services and the strong business we’ve built,” said CEO and founder Chris Spanos in a statement. “This financing will allow us to strengthen our commitment to our partners, service providers and consumers, as we continue to challenge the century-old, legacy roadside assistance model and to define the new market for connected mobility assistance services with our market-leading digital platforms, products and solutions.”

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McLean, Virginia venture capital firm Blue Delta Capital Partners is starting the year off with a bang in the form of a brand-new, $215 million fund for companies in the federal services space.

Just two years after the formation of its second fund — Blue Delta Capital Fund II — the company has fresh capital available for equity investments. Blue Delta Capital Fund III will make investments between $10 million and $50 million for growth-stage government service firms with headquarters in DC to help out with additional growth and expansions.

“As a team of investors with deep operating backgrounds, we are well-positioned to coach and mentor the next generation of talent in the federal market,” said Phil Nolan, general partner at Blue Delta, in a statement. “In addition, our Silicon Valley-like approach to providing significant stock option grants for those management teams aligns our incentives with theirs, enabling them to create life-changing outcomes for their employees, and helps our companies attract the best talent in the market, many of whom have worked with us in the past.”

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Alongside La Jolla, California’s Silvergate Capital Corporation, Arlington, Virginia’s EJF Capital is also launching a new venture opportunity: the EJF Silvergate Ventures Fund.

The fund, which hosts an undisclosed amount, will focus on early-stage fintech firms in the digital currency and payment spaces, plus banking and specialty financing. Specifically, EJF said, it will be funding early-stage companies developing tech for broad adoption.

“Silvergate and EJF recognize the urgent need for capital to support entrepreneurs who will modernize the existing financial system and reshape global commerce,” said EJF cofounder and co-CEO Neal Wilson in a statement. “Through the EJF Silvergate Ventures Fund, we can provide a truly dynamic venture capital experience rooted in collaboration, passion and a strong belief in the entrepreneurial spirit.”

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Other funding news

  • Woodbridge, Virginia’s CarpeDM (our 2021 Technical.ly Awards Startup of the Year winner) received a strategic investment from Virginia Venture Partners to fuel its customer acquisition plans.
  • Happyly, a Virginia Beach-based company that developed a corporate wellness app to help users get outside, also received an investment from Virginia Venture Partners. Happyly plans to use the funding for product development, customer development, content and sales.
  • Optoro, a DC-based data analytics firm for retailers, announced a $25 million funding round led by Zebra Technologies. Volta Circle, eBay and UPS also participated in the round.
  • GO Virginia Region 7,  a statewide funding initiative for collaborative economic and workforce projects, awarded $97,000 to Future Kings. The Dumfries, Virginia workforce organization helps Black and Latinx middle and high schools boys from underserved communities develop careers in STEM through education, mentoring and training.
  • In its second funding round of the year, Gaithersburg, Maryland’s VLP Therapeutics raised $21 million in a Series A-1 round, the company announced in December. The vaccine developer said it will be using the funding to develop a cancer treatment vaccine.

Government contracts

  • Centreville, Virginia’s Parsons Corporation, a defense technology firm, was awarded a $38 million task order from the Army’s Responsive Strategic Sourcing for Services contract. Through the contract, Parsons will develop and test software and training content on a one-year base period, with potential for extension.
  • Arlington’s Accenture Federal Services, the govtech arm of tech giant Accenture, was awarded a seven-year, $87 million contract from the national Patent and Trademark Office.
  • Bethesda, Maryland’s GRSi, a defense and intelligence firm, was awarded a three-year contract for analysis and assessment support for the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive and Kidney Diseases’ endocrinology and metabolic disease division.

Acquisitions

  • Bethesda-based Castellum, a cybersecurity and IT company, signed a letter of intent to acquire an East Coast government contractor. Castellum has yet to release the name of the firm but said the company generates over $4 million in revenue annually and hopes to close the deal in the first quarter.
Companies: CarpeDM / Urgently / Optoro / Accenture
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