Just when it seemed that Amazon Web Services had swallowed all hope for startup IaaS companies, IaaS vendor SingleHop, Inc. announced the finalization of a $27.5 million round of funding led by Battery Ventures with participation from the American Chartered Bank. Founded in 2006, SingleHop specializes in IaaS cloud computing undergirded by automated cloud management software. The company was ranked the #25 fastest growing business in the U.S. in 2011 by Inc. magazine, a significant increase from its #58 spot of the previous year. The $27.5 funding raise represents SingleHop’s first institutional capital raise and promises to position it for explosive growth that builds upon record earnings of $22 million in 2011, a 75% increase in comparison to revenues from 2010.
Dave Tabors, General Partner at Battery Ventures remarked on SingleHop’s positioning in the IaaS space by noting:
“SingleHop is well positioned given the rise in cloud computing and demand for outsourced IT services. With its automated technology platform, the company has carved out a unique position in the market. Customers are happy and sticking around, and that’s a direct result of the company’s business model, coupled with superior technology and a smart leadership team. We’re really looking forward to helping this company scale.”
SingleHop CEO Zak Boca elaborated on Tabors’s remarks on the company’s “automated technology platform” by underscoring how SingleHop was unique in the IaaS space “because all of our services are provided through our proprietary and fully automated platform.” Called LEAP, SingleHop’s technology platform automates the process of deploying and remotely managing servers from a range of computing devices.
Notable data points about SingleHop include the following:
• Clients in 114 countries
• Three data centers—two in Chicago, and one forthcoming in Phoenix
• 100,000+ servers
• $22 million in revenue in 2011
• $9.7 million EBITDA in 2011
Chicago-based SingleHop has managed to sustain significant growth during a time period marked by the arrival of bevies of IaaS vendors onto the cloud computing scene. Analysts and enterprise buyers would do well to watch this vendor unfurl its product differentiation as the IaaS market matures, particularly now that it is backed by a venture capital firm that participated in the success of the likes of Akamai, Bladelogic, Groupon, Guidewire Software and Opscode.
Cloud Computing Today 