French CRM outfit Brevo hits unicorn status

French customer relationship management (CRM) company Brevo has become a unicorn following a €500m funding round.

The funding round sees General Atlantic and Oakley Capital joining Brevo’s roster of investors while Bpifrance and Bridgepoint remain minority investors, with the latter reinvesting via Bridgepoint Development Capital V.  The round sees Partech fully exiting its stake while Brevo’s management and employees are now the company’s largest shareholders.

Brevo did not disclose its exact valuation following the round but said it had now achieved unicorn status, valued at least at $1bn.

Brevo previously raised a $35m Series A and $163m Series B, in rounds where its valuation was not publicly disclosed.

The Paris-headquartered company says it will use the funds to pursue further M&A, having banked 11 acquisitions since its inception, while investment in its growing US market has also been earmarked. Brevo employs over 1,000 people and has seven offices around the world, including in Paris, Berlin, Sofia and Austin.

Founded in 2012, Brevo began life as an email marketing startup targeting small businesses. But it has broadened its offering to become an all-in-one CRM and marketing platform, helping businesses manage their relationships with their customer base by unifying their communication channels.

It is seen as a challenger to US heavyweights like Salesforce and Hubspot. It has more than 600,000 customers, including eBay, H&M, Louis Vuitton and Carrefour, 

Sascha Günther, managing director, General Atlantic, added: “We see strong secular tailwinds in AI-driven customer engagement software platforms that serve SMBs and mid-market clients.

"Brevo is uniquely positioned at the centre of this shift with a product-led, capital-efficient foundation, and a visionary founder in Armand. We’re excited to support Brevo in becoming a global category leader.” 

Thomas Moussallieh, partner, Bridgepoint, said: “Brevo’s journey over the past five years has been extraordinary. Together, we’ve scaled the business internationally, expanded its capabilities, and built a platform that now leads its category in Europe."