Celonis, a software company based in Munich and New York, has received an additional $1B in funding from the Qatar Investment Authority to help in assisting customers to thrive in difficult economic environments.
This $1B in liquidity is supported by a $400M equity raise at a post-money valuation of almost $13M. In addition, Germany’s most valuable unicorn also expanded its revolving credit facility with a syndicate of leading global banks to gain access to up to $600M.
Gets backing from Qatar Investment Authority
Celonis plans to invest the additional funds in product innovation, drive adoption with Global 2000 customers, expand market potential through acquisition investments, and deepen penetration with ecosystem partners.
The Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is leading the $400 million Series D extension, which includes new blue-chip investors Activant Capital, a fund advised by Neuberger Berman, Alta Park Capital, and Commonfund Capital. Existing investors in the round extension included Arena Holdings, funds and accounts advised by T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc., Franklin Templeton, Durable Capital Partners LP, TCV, 83North, Accel Partners, and Sator Grove.
German decacorn’s secret sauce
The German decacorn had announced its $1B Series D round in June 2021, valued at $11B. The Series D financing round followed a $290M Series C financing round in November 2019, a $50M Series B in June 2018, and a $27.5M Series A in June 2016. At TFN, we recently listed the top 10 biggest unicorns in the world.
“Since the first days of Celonis, we have built a company that is operating on sound fundamentals, immutable customer value, and the kind of resiliency that performs at the highest levels in any economic environment,” said Bastian Nominacher, co-CEO and co-founder of Celonis. “These fundamentals are what puts Celonis in such a unique position to lean into the wind, while others are stepping back. With an additional $1B in liquidity, Celonis will have maximum flexibility to aggressively innovate, capitalize on new market opportunities, and extend our market leadership.”
“There is a ‘behind-the-scenes secret’ that Celonis is equally effective in driving top and bottom line value in both booming and challenging economies,” said Alex Rinke, co-CEO and co-founder of Celonis. “We have never experienced more urgency from customers to use Celonis to hunt down and fix the kind of process problems that can yield tens to hundreds of millions in cash and time savings.”
“Celonis is well aligned with QIA’s strategic focus on innovative, best-in-class companies that are shaping the global economy of the future,” said Mansoor Al-Mahmoud, CEO of QIA. “Celonis is providing clear added value for its customers by enhancing their operational efficiency and driving their performance. QIA looks forward to a long-term and productive relationship.”
“This historic credit facility will provide Celonis with ample flexibility to continue to grow its business and deliver exceptional value to its customers,” said Patrick Kratus, managing director and Head of KeyBanc Capital Markets Technology Investment & Corporate Banking. “Celonis is one of the rare gems in the enterprise technology industry whose value shines brighter in challenging economic markets, where every dollar counts and efficiency is coveted.”
Celonis was founded in 2011 as a college project for consulting firms by Alexander Rinke, Bastian Nominacher, and Martin Klenk. The company began by studying processes at German engineering giant Siemens and its complex estate of SAP ERP systems.
Celonis has formed strategic alliances with over 250 consulting and technology firms, including IBM, Accenture, PWC, KPMG, and ServiceNow.
Celonis uses data, intelligence, and automated actions to detect and resolve process issues hidden within enterprise systems. Celonis users can reduce the time it takes to find a process problem from years to hours. Celonis also assists customers in automatically resolving process issues without having to touch the underlying ERP, SCM, or CRM system.
