Irvine startup Acorns Grow Inc. is in rare company after securing an investment from TPG’s social and environmental investment fund.
The company, which describes itself as the country’s fastest-growing microinvesting app, now has TPG’s The Rise Fund as a backer.
The $2 billion fund was established last year by Bill McGlashan, founder and managing partner of TPG Growth, an equity and buyout arm of TPG Capital; billionaire Jeffrey Skoll, eBay’s first hire and president; and rock star Bono of U2.
The Acorns investment marks the fund’s first deal with a fintech company, an in-vogue catch-all term that describes companies that incorporate financial and technological applications and/or business models. The investment’s value wasn’t disclosed.
The transaction comes as the company preps to expand its Acorns Found Money retail rewards program and launch Acorns Later, which allows consumers to automatically invest part of their paychecks into a retirement fund.
Acorns’ app has surpassed more than 2.7 million accounts in its effort to serve the 182 million Americans who make less than $100,000 annually and the 69% of the population who don’t have at least $1,000 in emergency savings.
The company was No. 22 last year on the Wall Street Journal’s list of the Top 25 Tech Companies to Watch, and enters the new year as one of Forbes’ Top 30 Tech Exits To Watch in 2018.
Acorns has raised nearly $102 million and employs about 150, most based in Irvine. It has additional offices in New York, Australia and Portland, where it recently acquired startup Vault and the technology behind Acorns Later.
Other companies on the Forbes list with sizeable operations in OC include software security providers Cylance Inc. and CrowdStrike Inc.
Irvine-based Cylance, run by former Business Journal Innovator of the Year award winner Stuart McClure, was the Business Journal’s fastest-growing private company last year among midsized businesses, with a two-year sales increase of nearly 2,000% to more than $81.7 million in the 12 months through June. It’s raised $177 million since its 2012 inception and entered the year as one of the five largest software makers in OC with more than 550 local employees.
CrowdStrike, which changed its headquarters designation last year from Irvine to Silicon Valley, is the 30th-largest software maker in OC, with 53 local jobs at its 15440 Laguna Canyon Road office. The company has raised nearly $275 million since it was established in 2011.
Both Cylance and CrowdStrike were valued at $1 billion in the past year by Dow Jones VentureSource and PitchBook Data Inc.
New Energy
Transportation veteran and Clean Energy Fuels Corp. director Stephen Scully was appointed chairman of the country’s largest natural gas station operator.
Scully, 58, has been on the board of the Newport Beach-based company since 2014 and replaces Warren Mitchell, who remains a director.
Scully founded and was president of Fontana-based truck leasing and contract carriage provider Scully Companies when Ryder System acquired it in 2011 on undisclosed terms.
His appointment comes at a particularly rough juncture for Clean Energy, which reported a steep third-quarter sales drop and loss and a big charge-off related to underperforming and unprofitable stations.
The company raised $450 million in 2011 as part of its effort to build “America’s Natural Gas Highway,” a network of natural-gas stations spread out about every 250 miles along major transportation arteries in California, Texas, the Midwest, Southeast and Northeast.
While the network has grown to more than 575 stations, it hasn’t brought profits for the company, which lost $373.3 million from 2013 to 2016.
Clean Energy shares are down about 24% in the last year to a market value of $330 million.
‘Smart’ Locked Up
Count Lake Forest-based Kwikset, the top-selling U.S. residential lock maker, among the throngs of companies that introduced voice-activated and controlled devices at the recently concluded CES trade show.
The company exhibited a new feature of its Kevo Touch-to-Open smart locks and conversion kits at the world’s largest consumer electronics show, highlighting voice-control technology through Amazon Alexa-enabled devices and a Kevo Plus service upgrade.
The added feature, accessed through the Alexa app, allows homeowners to ask if their door is locked, and if not, commands it to lock.
Kwikset pushed one overarching message through the week at CES.
“It’s all about truly showing the depth and breadth of our products in the smart lock category and reinforcing our leadership in the space,” a spokesperson told the Business Journal during a product demo.
Voice assistants and activated devices were a major trend at this year’s gadget fest, highlighted by Google’s return to the CES showroom floor for the first time in years.
Several OC companies, including Irvine-based Insteon and D-link Systems Inc. in Fountain Valley, used the show to promote advancements and partnerships in the segment.
