Etsy lands $20M, bringing valuation to nearly $300M, hires ex-Googler as COO

It’s a busy time for e-commerce site Etsy, which focuses on handmade arts and crafts. The company announced yesterday that it has snagged $20 million in its fifth round of funding, led by Index Ventures. And just this morning, it was revealed that former Google international executive Adam Freed (pictured) is joining the company as COO, reports All Things Digital’s Kara Swisher.

The funding round brings Etsy’s valuation to nearly $300 million (not including the funding itself), according to TechCrunch. Partner Danny Rimer will get an observer’s seat on the company’s board, joining founder Rob Kalin, Flickr and Hunch mastermind Caterina Fake, Accel partner Jim Breyer, and famed Union Square Ventures partner Fred Wilson.

Etsy’s healthy valuation reinforces a point VentureBeat’s Owen Thomas made a few weeks ago: E-commerce is looking like an increasingly smarter bet for investors.

Freed, who left Google two years ago, “brings more solid management with a global flavor”, writes Swisher. At Google, “he focused on the localization and the development of the search giant’s international products and had also worked in international online sales and operations, including setting up Google’s online advertising operations in London, Paris, Hamburg, Tokyo and Sydney.”

Etsy has raised close to $52 million since it was founded in 2005. Former investors Accel and Hubert Berda Media joined Index Ventures in this latest round.

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Tags: Accel, e commerce, Hubert Berda Media, Index Ventures