Updata Partners Closes $875M Software Growth Equity Fund
Updata Partners, a growth equity firm based in Washington, D.C., announced the final close of its eighth fund, Updata Partners VIII, L.P., with $875 million in aggregate capital commitments. The fund will continue the firm's strategy of investing in capital-efficient, B2B software companies.
- The $875M for Updata Partners VIII represents a significant increase from its predecessor fund, Updata VII, which closed in May 2022 with $608 million in commitments. This brings the firm's total committed capital since its 1998 inception to over $1.5 billion. - Updata's investment criteria targets B2B software companies with $5 million to $50 million in revenue and growth rates between 25% and 100%. The firm typically makes equity investments of $20 million to $200 million and prefers to be the first institutional capital in businesses that are bootstrapped or lightly capitalized. - The firm is co-managed by General Partners Carter Griffin and Jon Seeber, who both have backgrounds as software operators and investors. Before joining Updata in 2005, Griffin co-founded and was CEO of Brivo Systems, a pioneer in SaaS for physical security, while Seeber managed acquisitions and investments for IBM Global Services before joining in 2006. - Updata has a track record of over 55 exits from more than 75 investments. Notable exits include the sale of Nintex to TPG, the recapitalization of Netwrix by TA Associates, and the acquisition of Bridge2 Solutions by Intercontinental Exchange (ICE). - In a 2012 transaction series, Updata generated a 4.5x return on invested capital by exiting two portfolio companies, Jobs2Web and Numara Software, for a combined transaction value of $410 million. - The firm's strategy often focuses on companies located outside of major tech hubs like Silicon Valley. Their value proposition centers on leveraging the partners' operational experience to help portfolio companies with initiatives like recruiting senior management, developing key SaaS metrics, and connecting with investment bankers for future transactions.
