Box Got $125 Million Investment

Box announced a $125 million investment, including $100 million from global growth investor General Atlantic (GA).

The company also welcomed Gary Reiner, operating partner at GA and former CIO of General Electric (GE), to its board of directors.

The investment will fund continued support of Box’s growing enterprise customer base, global expansion, and continued technology innovation.

"The confluence of cloud, mobile and social technology is transforming how every enterprise and individual manages information today," said Aaron Levie, co-founder and CEO, Box. "This new funding allows us to invest aggressively in the talent, technology and global expansion efforts required for Box to sit at the center of this shift and define the next generation of enterprise software."

Box’s business grew at a record-setting pace in the first half of 2012. Enterprise sales increased 200% year-over-year, and average deal size nearly doubled in the same period. In the most recent quarter, Box announced expanded operations in Europe with the opening of a London office, as well as a third data center to support its growing customer base, which includes enterprises like Procter & Gamble, DreamWorks, AAA, McAfee, Netflix and Random House, Inc.

Today, more than 120,000 businesses and individuals at 92% of the Fortune 500 use Box to manage information and collaboration in the cloud.

The addition of Gary Reiner to Box’s board of directors follows the company’s appointment of former VeriSign CFO Dana Evans. Reiner is currently an operating partner with General Atlantic, providing strategic counsel to GA and its portfolio companies. He co-led GA’s investment in Box with Brett Rochkind, MD, head of General Atlantic’s Palo Alto office, and co-head of its Internet and Technology sector. He previously served as SVP and CIO of GE, where he led M&A, sourcing, IT, operations and quality for the company.

Rochkind will serve as an observer on the board of directors and contribute his on-the-ground experience with GA in the U.S., Europe, Latin America and Asia to support Box with its global expansion.

"We believe Box is on the path to becoming the next great enterprise software company," said Reiner. "The move to the cloud is one of the most transformative shifts in the history of enterprise technology, and many CIOs are reevaluating and re-architecting their organizations’ IT strategies to take advantage of this trend. Box sits at the center of this shift, and is well positioned to help enterprises make the transition, which is already redefining how people collaborate and businesses compete."

"Enterprise software is a $300 billion market today and with the massive shift from on-premise, legacy technologies to the cloud, we believe Box is poised for phenomenal growth in the years ahead," said Rochkind. "Our experience helping enterprise software companies grow globally led us to observe and admire what Box has done during the last several years. We look forward to partnering with the management team to scale their success and make Box the preeminent content management and collaboration platform in the cloud."

In addition to GA, other participants in this latest round of investment include current Box investors Bessemer Venture Partners, DFJ Growth, New Enterprise Associates, SAP Ventures and Scale Venture Partners, as well as new investor Social+Capital Partnership. The investment is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in the next 30 days.

General Atlantic is a growth equity firm providing capital and strategic support for growth companies. It manages $17 billion in capital, investing between $50 million and $500 million in private and public companies. It has invested in more than 60 growth companies, including Alibaba Group, AKQA, Appirio, Axel Springer Digital Classifieds, Bazaarvoice, Decolar, Dice, Facebook, Gilt, Linx, Privalia, Renren, ServiceSource, Trinet and Web.com.