Salesforce cloud backup provider OwnBackup has raised $167.5 million in Series D funding, and the SaaS data protection company's valuation is nearing $1.4 billion, OwnBackup says.
The funding shows how innovative data protection startups continue to find blue ocean opportunities in the very crowded backup and disaster recovery (BDR) market.
Most SaaS-based backup providers -- particularly those that support MSPs in the SMB sector -- have mainly focused on Microsoft Office 365 and Google Workspace (formerly Google G Suite) cloud backup. Generally speaking, that focus makes sense considering the ubiquity of Microsoft and Google SaaS applications in the SMB sector.
In stark contrast, OwnBackup is best known for SaaS software that protects Salesforce customer data. Take a closer look, and you'll notice that OwnBackup also helps customers to automate so-called sandbox seeding processes. The automation allows customers to create ideally sized data sets to "achieve faster development cycles, reduce errors in production, and realize business benefits more quickly," OwnBackup asserts.
OwnBackup: Executive Leadership and Investors
OwnBackup is led by CEO Sam Gutmann, who previously built MSP-focused cloud backup provider Intronis (acquired by Barracuda in 2015). Gutmann's encore in the backup market is scoring major wins. Indeed, OwnBackup's revenues have generated triple-digit growth over the past five years, though annual revenue dollar figures are undisclosed . Nearly 3,000 businesses worldwide leverage OwnBackup, the company says.
Insight Partners, Salesforce Ventures and Sapphire Ventures led the Series D round. Existing investors Innovation Endeavors, Vertex Ventures, and Oryzn Capital also participated in the funding.
The funding arrives roughly six months after Salesforce discontinued its own data recovery service -- which created an even bigger market opportunity for OwnBackup.
In a prepared statement about the funding, Gutmann said:
"Since day one, we’ve believed that no company operating in the cloud should ever lose data. We are laser-focused on achieving our vision of a single pane of glass for companies to manage, backup, and secure all of their SaaS data. As cloud adoption and digital transformation accelerate, the data produced by and stored in SaaS applications is growing even faster. Executives recognize that their approach to cloud data management and security must evolve and adapt to a cloud-native paradigm. Our platform is purpose-built for cloud-to-cloud backup and protection and this latest round of funding is the next step in our mission to help our customers truly own their SaaS data."
Added Sarah Franklin, chief marketing officer, Salesforce:
"The Salesforce Customer 360 Platform is helping organizations digitally transform their businesses to have a single source of truth for their customers. We're glad to elevate our support for OwnBackup's solution, which extends the capabilities of our platform by providing end-to-end data protection."
Noted Rajeev Dham, managing director at Sapphire Ventures:
"As we look towards a post-COVID world, one of the key trends we’re noticing is companies doubling down on the data that underpins their increasingly virtual workflows. Every CIO needs to realize they—not their SaaS vendors—are ultimately responsible for their organization’s data, so smart business continuity strategies are paramount. That’s why we’re excited to collaborate with and support OwnBackup’s extraordinary leadership team as they continue to deliver incredible customer value in the Salesforce ecosystem and beyond."
Concluded Nikitas Koutoupes, managing director at Insight Partners.
"Amid today’s unprecedented demands on data use and security, OwnBackup’s market-leading business continuity and disaster recovery software is a critical requirement for any modern business. We are thrilled to continue to financially and operationally support the strong team at OwnBackup to accelerate their growth trajectory."
Private equity firm and venture capitalist Insight Partners has extensive experience in the data protection market. Indeed, Insight Partners' key investments and portfolio companies include Kaseya (owner of Spanning and Unitrends) and Veeam.
Salesforce SaaS Backup: Cloud Data Protection Rivals Emerge
Amid OwnBackup's growth, some cloud data protection providers have been moving into the Salesforce market. Key options include Kaseya's Spanning and Odaseva. Moreover, Druva acquired sfApex -- a Salesforce BDR software provider -- in November 2020.
Still, OwnBackup also remains on the move. The latest funding will support the company's global expansion while also striving to support "companies big and small." We're curious to know if the small business push will involve channel initiatives. Stay tuned.
