Squarespace raises $200M in fresh funding; valued at $1.7B

Squarespace, the website that lets you create and maintain websites, blogs, and online stores is now raising $200 million from General Atlantic, valuing the company at $1.7 billion, according to Bloomberg report. The United States-based company had previously raised $78.5 million from General Atlantic, Index Ventures, Accel, and others.

Squarespace, founded in 2004 provides service-based content management system, integrated website builder, blogging platform, hosting service, commerce platform, and domain name register.

The biggest portion of the capital will go towards buying out some of the company's shareholders. Squarespace also intends to establish a stronger presence outside the US. Anton Levy, the head of General Atlantic’s Internet and technology group, was quoted as saying that “if anything, we actually would have been interested in buying more.” Whatever percentage of the investment is left over should give Squarespace a helpful boost going into 2018.

Squarespace Chief Executive Officer Anthony Casalena said the revenue in the past year has increased 50 percent to about $300 million. Casalena suggested Squarespace is focussed on helping customers sell products on their website.

"It's the most requested feature on the platform right now," Casalena said. "A lot of people are there building a brand. They want to sell something." The company is also looking to expand into international markets such as France and Germany. He further said that the funding round is a landmark for the 14-year old business and its employees.