Chennai based Saas startup Freshworks seems to be leaving no stone unturned in seizing good companies through acquisition route. It has now acquired website analytics start-up firm Zarget, marking ninth acquisition for the Chennai based firm in three years. However, financial details of the latest acquisition have not been disclosed, but a statement issued to the media mentioned that Zarget’s angel investors have retrieved their initial investment through this deal.
Founded in 2015 by former employees of Zoho Corporation, Zarget helps companies to optimize the conversion rates of their websites. This web analytic firm is also based in Chennai and is reportedly backed by several high profile VC firms including Accel Partners, Matrix Partners India and Sequoia Capital India. According to some reports, Freshworks’ CEO and founder Girish Mathrubootham is also one of the investors in the firm.
For Freshworks the latest acquisition will apparently help in improving its marketing initiatives and consequently aid in efficiently managing the client’s customer support needs. Girish said that growing number of their clients were asking for help on marketing front, which propelled them to make the latest acquisition.
Established in 2010, Freshworks has steadily emerged as the poster boy of the Indian Saas startup. The company’s current valuation, which is approximately $750, speaks volume about the investor’s faith and its impressive progress so far.
Freshworks raised last funding In November 2016, with $55 million in series F funding led by Sequoia Capital India and other existing investors. Many analysts believe that if the company continues to grow impressively, it will soon become the first Indian Saas startup to achieve the unicorn status.
But Girish is supposedly more focused in making Freshworks a default cloud-based business software platform for companies of various sizes, while the goal to become a unicorn company seems distant on his priority list.
