News and Insights

December 2, 2020

ShipMonk Raises $290 Million

December 2, 2020 / (Crunchbase News) / – ShipMonk, now armed with a $290 million growth equity investment from Summit Partners, is poised to enter its next phase. Prior to this investment, the Fort Lauderdale, Florida-headquartered provider of direct-to-consumer fulfillment and technology tools was essentially bootstrapped and profitable since it was founded […]

November 23, 2020

Terabase Featured by The Wall Street Journal

Terabase was recently featured in a Wall Street Journal article by Yuliya Chernova, New Wave of Climate Tech Boosted by Biden Win, published on November 23, 2020. Solar-technology startup Terabase Energy, for example, raised a $6 million Series A round this year led by SJF Ventures. Founded in 2018 to […]

October 28, 2020

HYLA Mobile Acquired by Assurant

NEW YORK / October 28, 2020 / (BUSINESS WIRE) / – Assurant (NYSE: AIZ), a leading global provider of lifestyle and housing solutions that support, protect and connect major consumer purchases, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire HYLA Mobile, a leading provider of smartphone software, trade-in […]

September 21, 2020

Terabase Investment in Pursuit of $0.01/kWh Solar Power Globally

September 21, 2020 / LinkedIn / – At SJF Ventures, we have a history of investing in the clean energy transition which is only becoming more important as we grapple with the magnitude of the climate crisis. We are thrilled to announce leading the Series A round at Terabase Energy as the next […]

September 21, 2020

SJF Publishes 2020 Impact Report

SJF Ventures is proud to release its 2020 Impact Report, which details the fund’s impact strategy, gives an overview of SJF’s investment and impact themes per sector, and provides a deep dive into the various dimensions of impact for each portfolio company. Download SJF’s 2020 Impact Report here. Please note […]

September 9, 2020

SJF Ventures Leads Terabase Series A

BERKELEY, California, September 9, 2020 / PRNewswire / — Solar digital solutions startup Terabase Energy announced Wednesday that it has closed a $6 million Series A financing, led by SJF Ventures. On a mission to drive solar power prices down below one cent per kilowatt-hour (kWh) by 2025, Terabase provides proprietary software, automation and digital deployment solutions for utility-scale projects […]

August 18, 2020

SJF Leads Perishable Shipping Solutions Series A

YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio, August 18, 2020 / PRWEB / — Perishable Shipping Solutions (PSS), a leader in the e-commerce market for perishable cold and frozen food fulfillment logistics, announced today that it has closed an $8.7M Series A round of financing. The investment was led by SJF Ventures with participation from Grotech […]

August 5, 2020

SJF Invests in ROOM

NEW YORK, August 5, 2020 / CREtech /- ROOM, the startup reshaping the modern workspace, today announced it has closed a $12.5 million Series A round to fuel the upcoming expansion of its product portfolio with a suite of modular architectural solutions designed to meet crucial demand for adaptability and […]

August 5, 2020

SJF Invests in Springboard Series B

San Francisco, August 5, 2020 / Springboard / – Springboard, a mentor-guided online learning platform that prepares people for in-demand careers, announced today it has raised $31 million in Series B funding, bringing its total capital raised to more than $50 million. This round was led by new investor Telstra Ventures, […]

July 30, 2020

Vital Farms Announces Pricing of IPO

AUSTIN, Texas, July 30, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Vital Farms, Inc. (“Vital Farms”), a Certified B Corporation that offers a range of ethically produced pasture-raised foods nationwide, today announced the pricing of its initial public offering of 9,303,977 shares of its common stock at a price of $22.00 per share. The […]

July 22, 2020

SJF Leads $10 Million Financing of Cooks Venture

NEW YORK, July 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ – Cooks Venture, a vertically-integrated food company re-envisioning the future of agriculture, today announced the closing of a $10 million Series A investment. SJF Ventures and Cultivian Sandbox led the investment with participation from Larry Schwartz and John Roulac, executive producer of the upcoming documentary on regenerative agriculture, Kiss the Ground. Cooks Venture breeds […]

July 10, 2020

Technology Innovations Tackling the Youth, Young Adult Mental Health Crisis

Stephanie Nieman recently authored an article, Technology innovations tackling the youth, young adult mental health crisis, that was first published in MobiHealthNews.  The piece gives a breakdown of the growing list of digital mental health tools available to these populations, and the various ways to deploy them. July 10, 2020 / MobiHealthNews / – […]

June 30, 2020

Optoro’s Warehouse Recovery – A Story of Resilience

There is no playbook for what to do when your warehouse is hit by a tornado, or when the world is impacted by a pandemic. SJF portfolio company Optoro faced both at once. Resilience, persistence and drive allowed the company to persevere during the toughest challenges, and Optoro’s technology enabled […]

June 5, 2020

Black Lives Matter – SJF Ventures Statement of Support

We, like you, have been dealing with shock, sadness, frustration, and anger in the wake of the recent murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis.  As with the cases of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and others, we know the unfortunate truth that for every George Floyd, there are an unknown number […]

April 21, 2020

SJF Ventures Cleantech Office Hours

SJF Ventures is offering Cleantech Open Office Hours from 10 am – 6 pm ET on Thursday, April 30 and Wednesday, May 13 to support growth-stage companies with the potential to rapidly scale in an economic recovery. During the office hours, cleantech entrepreneurs will present their investment opportunity or discuss […]

April 18, 2020

Coronavirus Proves Government is Important

Dave Kirkpatrick recently authored an article, Coronavirus Proves Government Is Important, that was first published in The Hill.  The column covers how attacks on government have weakened our response to the pandemic and climate crisis and highlights the urgent need for proficient and accountable governments to protect all citizens from these crises, […]

March 27, 2020

Vital Farms and Cooks Venture Discuss Effects of the Coronavirus on Food Systems

SJF Ventures portfolio companies Vital Farms and Cooks Venture were mentioned in the news talking about the effects of the Coronavirus.  The Washington Post discussed changing consumer habits with Vital Farms’ CEO, and The New York Times talked about food supply chain issues with Cooks Venture’s CEO. Stress-baking and hoarding […]

January 22, 2020

SJF Invests in Catalant Series E

Boston, Massachusetts, January 22, 2020 / PR Newswire / – Catalant Technologies today announced the close of $35 million of additional funding from its Series E equity round and expansion of its existing debt facility to scale its product offering and expand into new global markets. Catalant is a leading provider of software that […]

January 21, 2020

Optoro Publishes 2019 Impact Report

Each year, Optoro publishes an impact report outlining the company’s environmental and social impact achievements. Through its mission to make retail more sustainable by eliminating all waste from returns, on average in 2019, Optoro clients were able to keep 96% of returned and excess goods out of landfill. Additionally, the […]

January 14, 2020

Vital Farms Launches Traceability Initiative

January 14, 2020 / Triple Pundit / – Picture this: A chicken factory farm with overcrowded hens packed onto the cement floor with a higher risk for disease and without good-quality feed or even fresh air. Now, picture this: Family farms that provide their pasture-raised hens with plenty of feed, nutrients and […]