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3rd largest social networking site, Pinterest, has pinned down a lead investor in their highly contested round of funding according to AllThingsD. The Japansese e-commerce company, Rakuten, will invest “upwards of $50 million in a $100 million round.” This total investment round will place the valuation of Pinterest at $1.5 billion dollars.
The partnership makes sense from an offerings and from a global expansion standpoint. Pinterest has stopped leveraging affiliate links for revenue and moving forward with commerce on the site is a logical next step. With the global expansion, Rakuten released the following statement in an official press release:
The funding will allow Pinterest to continue improving its service and expanding its community globally. The investment also marks the start of a strategic partnership between Rakuten and Pinterest to help expand in Japan and into Rakuten’s 17 other global markets.
Last October a round of $25 million had valued Pinterest at $200 million. Just seven months later, Pinterest’s valuation has risen 750%. Rakuten is a leader in e-commerce with over 10,000 employees worldwide.
For more information please see AllThingsD.
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