Knowde, an online marketplace for chemicals and polymers, has just closed a Series C funding round, TechCrunch has learned exclusively.
The San Jose-based startup raised $60 million, lower than the $500 million valuation it received in its most recent round, according to people familiar with the matter. The round values the company at more than 20 times ARR, according to sources familiar with the deal. New investors in the round included Blue Cloud Ventures and Point72 Private Investments, in addition to existing backer Sequoia.
Noudet declined to comment.
The company has now raised more than $150 million in venture funding in total, with its most recent round being a $72 million Series B led by Coatue, which closed in August 2021. Seqouia led the company's $14 million Series A round, which closed in May 2020.
Knowde was founded in 2017 to bring the chemical and polymer marketplace online. Co-founder and CEO Ali Amin-Javaheri is the son of a DuPont chemist and has spent his entire career in the industry. Prior to founding Knowde, Amin-Javaheri worked at ChemPoint, which also tried to bring technology to the chemical market but then pivoted to become an intermediary distribution platform.
Knowde currently has over 8,000 chemical suppliers in the market and works with numerous brands including Unilever, Johnson & Johnson and P&G.