Outbrain gets more funding

Content discovery platform Outbrain announced it has raised a new round of funding of US$35 million, bringing its total financing to US$99 million.HarbourVest led the round with participation from Outbrain’s existing investors Carmel Ventures, Index Ventures, Gemini Israel Funds, GlenRock Israel, Rhodium, and Lightspeed Venture Partners and a new participant, Vintage Partners. The company will use the new funding to continue its innovations in content discovery and expand its global business, which currently spans 13 offices.The latest round of funding is part of Outbrain’s aggressive growth plans.“This investment comes at a pivotal moment in Outbrain’s evolution. We’ve matured from an upstart content recommendation company to a key player in the content ecosystem and a trusted partner for the world’s best brands and publishers. The team at HarbourVest will be an ideal partner for us as we move into our next phase of growth,” Outbrain CEO Yaron Galai (pictured) said."We’ve been following Outbrain's progress for over two years and continue to be incredibly impressed with what Yaron and the rest of the team have created. This is a company committed to providing value to readers and publishers through quality content. Outbrain is a clear leader in a growing and increasingly important part of the internet advertising marketplace. HarbourVest is excited to partner with management and current investors in the next phase of Outbrain's growth,” Ian Lane, principal at HarbourVest Partners said.In the Asian region, Outbrain serves a growing client base out of its regional headquarters in Singapore. The office is also used as a launch pad for further expansion throughout the Asian region. Outbrain’s platform is currently with over 80 premium publishers in Asia, including titles such as ABS-CBN, Channel NewsAsia, CNN Travel, The Times of India and Yahoo!.According to Outbrain, it serves more than 100 billion organic and paid content recommendations per month.The company has also announced plans to be more active in Asia, having set up shop in Singapore signing on multiple brands and publishers across the region. It is also looking to expand to other markets in the region such as the Philippines and India in the future.