Groupon Raises $30 million

Groupon, a Chicago-based social commerce business helping consumers save money, has raised $30 million in funding from Accel Partners.

Press release:

-Groupon, the social commerce service that has saved consumers in cities across America more than $36 million since its launch 12 months ago, has raised a $30 million round of capital led by Accel Partners with participation from Groupon’s initial investor, New Enterprise Associates. The financing will be used to accelerate Groupon’s customer acquisition, expand into new geographies and further develop its technology.

Groupon leverages group buying and social media to provide its millions of customers big discounts on the best local businesses in major cities such as Chicago, Boston, New York City, San Francisco, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. To date, customers have purchased over 800,000 Groupons on deals ranging from spa treatments and golf outings to fine dining and skydiving.

“We’re proud of the positive impact Groupon is having on consumers and business owners,” said Groupon founder and CEO Andrew Mason. “Groupon is pioneering a new category, and we believe adding Accel’s experience partnering with digital and social media companies together with NEA’s depth in the area will help us reach our full potential.”

“The social graph is laying the foundation for a new generation of industry-defining Internet companies, and Groupon has effectively invented social commerce,” said Kevin Efrusy, Partner at Accel Partners. “Andrew and the Groupon team are executing with incredible focus at a breakneck pace and are delighting both their merchants and customers.”

About Groupon
Groupon, launched in November 2008 in Chicago, features a daily deal on the best stuff to do, eat, see, and buy in 26 major cities across the United States, including Chicago, Boston, New York City, San Francisco, Atlanta and Washington, D.C. Groupon uses collective buying power to offer unbeatable prices and provide a win-win for businesses and consumers. The social commerce service is a project of The Point (http://www.thepoint.com), an online community launched in 2007 for organizing group action. Groupon plans to be in 30 cities by the end of 2009. For more information, visit http://www.groupon.com.
To get Groupon’s daily free email for the best in your city, subscribe at http://www.groupon.com.
To learn more on how to become a featured business on Groupon, visit http://www.grouponworks.com.
To see some of Groupon’s top-performing deals, visit: http://www.groupon.com/chicago/deals

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About Accel
Founded in 1983, Accel Partners has a long history of excellence and innovation in venture capital, and is dedicated to partnering with outstanding entrepreneurs and management teams to build world-class businesses. Accel today invests globally, with offices in Palo Alto, California, London, UK, and Bangalore, India as well as in China via the IDG-Accel Partnership. With over $6 billion under management, Accel has helped entrepreneurs build over 300 successful companies, many of which have defined their categories, including Admob, Alfresco, BBN, Brightcove, ComScore, Etsy, Facebook, GlamMedia, Imperva, Infinera, Interwoven, JBoss, Kayak, Macromedia , metroPCS, Playfish, Polycom/PictureTel, QlikTech, Real Networks, Riverbed, Springsource, UUNet, Veritas, Walmart.com, and XenSource. For more information on Accel, visit: http://www.facebook.com/accel.