Branch Metrics Announces $15M Series A Funding To Fuel Adoption Of The Branch Mobile Linking Standard

Branch is the market leading, mobile linking platform that allows developers to leverage Branch links to build and measure powerful growth initiatives for their mobile app.

News provided by

Branch Metrics

Feb 26, 2015, 10:30 ET

PALO ALTO, Calif., Feb. 26, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Branch Metrics, a mobile software company focused on mobile linking, announced today that it has finalized $15 million in Series A financing co-led by leading venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates (NEA) and Ben Narasin, with participation from Pejman Mar Ventures, Zach Coelius, Cowboy Ventures and TriplePoint Capital. This funding arrives on the heels of the Series Seed financing of $2.75 million that was finalized in September 2014. The new funding will be used for market expansion of Branch's mobile linking platform.

Branch links have popularized what is commonly referred to as "mobile deep linking," where pages inside of mobile apps are accessible immediately with the click of a link. Previously, these types of links would only work if the app was currently installed on the mobile device. Branch's technology allows the links to function regardless of app installation. Once developers adopt Branch links, pages within the app – news articles, photos, messages, product pages, and more – are finally just a click away. Branch links also enable companies to track sharing activity, create smart referral systems, and generate invaluable insight for marketing campaigns.

"Four years ago, just 3% of Internet use was through a mobile device – today the total is nearly 40%. As native application use is the preferred mobile experience, Branch links make the native app transitions much smoother for the end user and more like the familiar experience of web page transitions," said Alex Austin, CEO and co-founder of Branch. "At the rate developers are adopting Branch links, it's very likely that by the end of 2015, every person with a smartphone will have benefited from our technology."

Since the service was announced five months ago, there have been more than 20 million links to pages inside apps created across Branch's network of app developers. The total number of links is expected to grow to greater than 100 million within the next three months.

"The substantial customer interest and subsequent platform growth have been remarkable," said Scott Sandell, general partner at NEA. "Alex and his team have demonstrated the dynamic ability to accomplish in weeks what would take some companies months. Branch is providing a critical solution for any organization with a mobile presence – I am thrilled to be a part of their journey to revolutionize the mobile app ecosystem."

The service was immediately adopted by some of the top product teams in mobile, including HotelTonight, iHeartRadio, Instacart, Coffee Meets Bagel and nearly a thousand more. Coffee Meets Bagel has leveraged Branch's linking technology to convert web traffic to mobile in addition to powering their profile links. "After discovering Branch Metrics, we quickly replaced all of our deep links with Branch links to take advantage of their superior accuracy and ease of use across our three platforms (web, iOS, and Android). Branch Metrics gives unparalleled insights and functionality compared with anything we could have built in-house," said Adam Berlinsky-Schine, Chief Technology Officer for Coffee Meets Bagel.

The Branch linking and analytics SDK are available for immediate use at https://branch.io; The service can be used via the iOS, Android or Web SDK as well as Branch dashboard and Public API. The core linking and analytics service are free to use.

About Branch Metrics (https://branch.io)

Our mission at Branch is to make app growth and discovery easier and more achievable for every app developer out there. To accomplish this, we've built a complete end-to-end linking solution that replaces every link that points to an app, such as shared link, marketing links, referral link, advertising links and more. Additionally, our dashboard delivers powerful insights into the performance of growth initiatives, allowing improvement of user activations and conversions. Branch is an essential tool for any mobile app hungry for growth.

Find Branch Metrics on:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/branchmetrics
Twitter: https://twitter.com/branchmetrics
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/branch-metrics
Google+: https://plus.google.com/+BranchIoMobile/posts
SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/branchmetrics/

About NEA

New Enterprise Associates, Inc. (NEA) is a global venture capital firm focused on helping entrepreneurs build transformational businesses across multiple stages, sectors and geographies. With approximately $13 billion in committed capital, NEA invests in technology and healthcare companies at all stages in a company's lifecycle, from seed stage through IPO. The firm's long track record of successful investing includes more than 200 portfolio company IPOs and more than 320 acquisitions since its founding in 1977. In the U.S., NEA has offices in Menlo Park, CA; Boston, MA; New York, NY; Chicago, IL; and the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. In addition, New Enterprise Associates (India) Pvt. Ltd. has offices in Bangalore and Mumbai, India and New Enterprise Associates (Beijing), Ltd. has offices in Beijing and Shanghai, China. For additional information, visit www.nea.com.