Zipwhip Acquisition, Valuation, Funding & Investors
Zipwhip was acquired by Twilio for $850M in May 2021, a 15.3x multiple on $55M of revenue.
Zipwhip revenue at acquisition
$55M
Last twelve months · May 2021
Zipwhip revenue multiple at acquisition
15.3x
EV/Revenue · May 2021
Cumulative funding Zipwhip raised
$88M
across 4 funding rounds
About Zipwhip
Zipwhip is a cloud-based texting platform that enables businesses to communicate via SMS and MMS using landline or VoIP numbers. Seattle-headquartered and founded in 2007, it provides direct carrier connectivity for scalable two-way messaging, supporting high-volume conversations for enterprises in retail, healthcare, and logistics. Acquired by Twilio in 2021 for $850 million, Zipwhip integrates with CRM systems like Salesforce and processes billions of messages yearly, offering features such as automation, analytics, and compliance tools for HIPAA and TCPA adherence.
Founded
2007
HQ
Seattle, WAWebsite
Status
Acquired
Customer focus
B2B
Revenue model
Subscription
Revenue
$10M (Jan 2019)
Valuation
$262M (Jan 2019)
Zipwhip Acquisition
Zipwhip was acquired by Twilio for $850M on 17 May 2021.
The acquisition price implies a 15.3x revenue multiple on $55M of revenue.
Before the acquisition Zipwhip had raised $88M across 4 funding rounds.
| Acquirer | Date | Type | Price | EV/Revenue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 May 2021 | Strategic M&A | $850M | 15.3x |
Zipwhip Valuation
Zipwhip is currently valued at $262M, based on its Series D in January 2019.
The $52M round was led by Goldman Sachs Growth Equity, with participation from OpenView, Voyager Capital and M12.
Zipwhip's valuation has grown 9.7x from $27M at its Series B in January 2015 to $262M in January 2019, across 2 priced rounds.
Zipwhip valuation by funding round
Revenue multiple| Date | Stage | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2019 | Series D | $262M | 26.2x |
| Jan 2015 | Series B | $27M | 2.7x |
Zipwhip Revenue
Zipwhip's latest recorded revenue is $10M, as of its Series D in January 2019. At a $262M valuation, that implies a 26.2x revenue multiple.
Revenue moved from $10M in January 2015 to $10M in January 2019, while the revenue multiple moved from 2.7x to 26.2x.
Zipwhip revenue by funding round
| Date | Revenue * | Valuation | Revenue Multiple | Stage |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2019 | $10M | $262M | 26.2x | Series D |
| Jan 2015 | $10M | $27M | 2.7x | Series B |
* Revenue (or ARR) figures are the values recorded alongside each funding round. Typically run-rate revenue at the time of the deal, or a reported LTM (last 12 months) revenue.
Zipwhip Funding History
Zipwhip has raised a total of $88M across 4 funding rounds.
Zipwhip's first fundraising round was a $5M Series B in January 2015. The most recent completed round was a $52M Series D in January 2019.
Zipwhip funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2019 | Series D | Goldman Sachs Growth Equity (lead); OpenView; Voyager Capital; M12 | $52M | $262M | Zipwhip is a Seattle-based business texting software company that enables organizations across various sectors to send and receive text messages with customers using existing business phone numbers. The platform serves businesses ranging from small insurance shops to large enterprises and professional sports teams, offering an alternative to traditional communication channels. Zipwhip raised $51.5 million in a Series D growth round in January 2019 led by Goldman Sachs Private Capital Investing group, with participation from existing investors OpenView, M12 (formerly Microsoft Ventures), and Voyager Capital. Total funding raised across all rounds reached $92.5 million. The company demonstrated strong growth metrics at the time, with revenues increasing by more than 80 percent year-over-year and a customer base of over 10,000 customers and 3.3 million phone numbers across approximately 30,000 businesses. Matthew Dorr, Vice President of Goldman Sachs' Private Capital Investing group, joined Zipwhip's board as part of the investment. The company planned to deploy the capital toward product and engineering development, building enterprise-grade features for larger clients, and expanding its sales and leadership teams. Zipwhip later became the subject of an acquisition when Twilio, a communications software company, agreed to purchase it for approximately $850 million in an all-cash and stock deal announced in 2021, with the transaction completing in July 2021. |
| Sep 2017 | Series C | OpenView (lead); Voyager Capital; M12 | $23M | - | Zipwhip is a Seattle-based software platform enabling two-way business texting over existing landline and mobile numbers, targeting SMBs and enterprises for customer communications like alerts, confirmations, and CRM integrations. On September 6, 2017, it closed a $22.5 million Series C funding round led by OpenView, with participation from prior investors Voyager Capital and Microsoft Ventures (now M12), bringing total funding under $40 million at that time. The capital was allocated to enhance the core network, accelerate product development including partnerships like Apple's Business Chat and Google's RCS, and scale sales and marketing to expand its customer base. The round aligned with surging demand for business texting, positioning Zipwhip to text-enable over 200 million U.S. business phone numbers. Pricing was volume-based at tiers starting from $35/month, offering features like contact integration, picture messaging, auto-replies, and scheduled messages. OpenView's Scott Maxwell joined the board, citing Zipwhip's intuitive platform as key to bridging businesses' messaging gaps. Subsequent traction showed robust growth: by 2019's Series D ($51.5M led by Goldman Sachs, total raised $92.5M), Zipwhip reported over 10,000 customers, 80% year-over-year revenue growth, and 3.3 million phone numbers across 20,000 businesses versus 6,500 in 2017. |
| Oct 2016 | Series B | Voyager Capital (lead); GCI Com; M12; Inteliquent | $9M | - | Zipwhip is a business texting platform that enables consumers to send SMS messages to businesses using their existing phone numbers, eliminating the need for businesses to use separate numbers for text communication. The company's software is used by insurance agencies (including Allstate and Farmers), car dealerships, broadcasters like CBS, staffing firms, fitness gyms, dental offices, veterinary clinics, and other consumer-facing businesses that conduct significant business over the phone. In October 2016, Zipwhip closed a $9 million Series B funding round led by Voyager Capital, with participation from Microsoft Ventures, regional telecom GCI, and Inteliquent. At the time of the announcement, the company had surpassed 100 employees and stated it was adding $400,000 in annual recurring revenue each month, with expectations to reach $10 million in ARR by the third quarter of 2016. The company disclosed 356% annual growth in ARR and 300% growth in messaging traffic volume earlier that year. The company did not publicly disclose its post-money valuation for this round. Zipwhip's investors and strategic partners brought complementary value to the platform. Microsoft's involvement provided distribution opportunities through the software giant's channels, while Inteliquent contributed expertise in voice and messaging infrastructure, and GCI offered regional telecom relationships. The company planned to use the funding to enhance its product offering and expand its sales team. |
| Jan 2015 | Series B | Ronin Capital (lead) | $5M | $27M | Zipwhip provides software that enables companies to send and receive texts through existing fixed-line business numbers. The company serves enterprise customers including Farmers Insurance, Twilio, OpenMarket, San Antonio Spurs, Seattle Seahawks, and Cumulus Media, with partnerships such as Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and Zapier. In January 2015, Zipwhip's valuation reached $26.52 million during its Series B funding round on January 27. Investors in Zipwhip include Ronin Capital, Goldman Sachs, M12 (Microsoft's venture capital arm), OpenView, and Voyager Capital. The company had raised approximately $95 million in total funding by 2019 and grown to 292 employees and 12,000 software customers, with over 35,000 businesses using its technology. A later Series B round of $9 million was led by Voyager Capital, with participation from Microsoft Ventures, GCI, and Inteliquent. Zipwhip continued expanding, culminating in an acquisition by Twilio on May 17, 2021, after raising a total of $88.06 million over multiple rounds. |
Who has invested in Zipwhip?
7 investors have backed Zipwhip across its funding rounds, including M12, Voyager Capital, OpenView, Goldman Sachs Growth Equity, GCI Com and Inteliquent.
Lead investors include Goldman Sachs Growth Equity, OpenView, Voyager Capital and Ronin Capital.
Zipwhip Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seattle, WA | 3 | Lead | Oct 2016 | |
| United States | 3 | Participant | Oct 2016 | |
| Boston, MA | 2 | Lead | Sep 2017 | |
| Chicago, IL | 1 | Lead | Jan 2015 | |
 United Kingdom | 1 | Participant | Oct 2016 | |
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Start Free TrialZipwhip Competitors
Zipwhip competitors include listed companies like Cybozu, Pexip and Montnets, and private ones like CleverTap, Typeform and Soprano Design.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Japan | Publicly listed | $241M | $84M | $881M | 3.1x | |
 Norway | Publicly listed | $118M | $29M | $819M | 5.7x | |
 China | Publicly listed | $389M | ($17M) | $908M | - | |
| San Francisco, CA | Private | $45M | - | $775M | 17.2x | |
 Barcelona | Private | $70M | - | $935M | 13.4x | |
 Sydney | Private | - | - | $753M | - |
Zipwhip Public Comps
Zipwhip is no longer listed, but its public comps include Cybozu, Pexip, Montnets, Vercom, Truecaller, Tanla Platforms, Enghouse Systems, Consensus Cloud, Sprout Social and Ooma.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $241M | $84M | 3.4x | 3.1x | 9.8x | 9.2x | |||
| $118M | $29M | 6.6x | 5.7x | 26.6x | 18.6x | |||
| $389M | ($17M) | 2.5x | - | (55.5x) | - | |||
| $125M | $34M | 5.9x | 5.2x | 21.8x | 18.2x | |||
| $195M | $61M | 3.2x | 3.4x | 10.2x | 11.8x | |||
| $461M | $76M | 1.2x | 1.2x | 7.6x | 7.1x | |||
| $357M | $87M | 1.4x | 1.4x | 5.6x | 5.6x | |||
| $350M | $166M | 3.2x | 3.1x | 6.8x | 5.9x | |||
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Common questions about Zipwhip
| When was Zipwhip founded? | Zipwhip was founded in 2007. |
| Where is Zipwhip headquartered? | Zipwhip is headquartered in Seattle, WA, United States. |
| Is Zipwhip publicly listed? | No, Zipwhip was acquired by Twilio in May 2021. |
| Who acquired Zipwhip? | Zipwhip was acquired by Twilio in May 2021. |
| How much was Zipwhip acquired for? | Zipwhip was acquired for $850M in May 2021, a 15.3x revenue multiple. |
| What is Zipwhip's valuation? | Zipwhip was last valued at $262M in its Series D in January 2019. |
| How much funding has Zipwhip raised? | Zipwhip has raised $88M across 4 funding rounds. |
| What was Zipwhip's last funding round? | Zipwhip's last funding round was a $52M Series D in January 2019, led by Goldman Sachs Growth Equity. |
| Who are Zipwhip's investors? | Zipwhip's investors include Voyager Capital, M12, OpenView, Ronin Capital, GCI Com, Goldman Sachs Growth Equity and Inteliquent. |
| What is Zipwhip's revenue? | Zipwhip's latest recorded revenue is $10M (January 2019). |
| What is Zipwhip's revenue multiple? | Zipwhip's latest valuation implies a 26.2x revenue multiple ($262M valuation on $10M of revenue). |
| Which companies are comparable to Zipwhip? | Companies comparable to Zipwhip include Cybozu, Pexip, Montnets, CleverTap, Typeform and Soprano Design. |
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