Bill.com racks up $8.5M to simplify payments

Bill.com racks up $8.5M to simplify payments

Bill.com, a startup specializing in software for online bill payment and management, added another $8.5 million to its coffers with investments from August Capital and DCM. The round brings total investment to $17 million and puts David Hornik, a partner at August, on Bill.com’s board.

The Palo Alto-based company automates paperless bill management and integrates it with accounting records. Bill.com says companies that pay bills digitally are more likely pay on time and avoid extra fees and penalties. They… Continue Reading

August Capital may get a bigger chunk of profits on $650M fund

August Capital may get a bigger chunk of profits on $650M fund

August Capital’s announcement that it raised a $650 million fifth fund may be even more impressive than it initially appeared. PEHub reports that the fund is August’s first to include a 30 percent carried interest structure (the percentage of profits used to pay general partners at firms).

Even normally, 30 percent would be on the high side — VentureBeat Editor Matt Marshall tells me the industry standard is closer to 25 percent — but the deal… Continue Reading

Howard Hartenbaum, early backer of Skype, joins August Capital

Howard Hartenbaum, early backer of Skype, joins August Capital

Howard Hartenbaum, the earliest investor in Internet phone company Skype, has joined Silicon Valley venture capital firm August Capital as a partner.

August partner David Hornik blogs about the move, and describes the hazing process of inviting someone new like Hartenbaum into the firm. He summarizes the decision to hire Hartenbaum as follows:

First and foremost, Howard is a geek. After graduating from MIT, Howard didn’t join an investment bank; he joined Honda Motor Company where he… Continue Reading

Jaxtr raises $10 million, doubles users in one month

Jaxtr raises $10 million, doubles users in one month

Jaxtr, a service for dodging international calling fees using your phone, has raised $10 million in series A round led by August Capital.

It says it has doubled in size in the last month to a million users.

The Menlo Park, Calif. company (more detail from our past coverage here and here [update: first comment below]) allows you to make free phone calls over the web or your mobile and landline phones, including low local rates for… Continue Reading

The Lobby — are you on the list?

The Lobby — are you on the list?

David Hornik, a partner at August Capital, a venture capital firm that prides itself at being at the center of Silicon Valley action, likes to wax on about the value of conferences.

He devotes a category on his blog to conferences, which has about 70 posts on the subject, even though he doesn’t post very frequently. Now he’s helped kicked off an elite unconference, arguing that you don’t learn anything from keynotes or powerpoint presentations. In… Continue Reading