By Pui-Wing Tam
Practice Fusion, a San Francisco start-up that provides an online electronic medical record platform, said it has raised a new $34 million round of funding.
The funding values Practice Fusion at close to $500 million, up from around $100 million in its previous financing round, according to a person familiar with the situation. The new funding–which is a Series C, or third round of financing–is led by Artis Ventures, with participation from existing investors such as Founders Fund, Morgenthaler Ventures and Felicis Ventures. Overall, Practice Fusion has raised a total of about $75 million in financing since its 2007 inception.
Ryan Howard, Practice Fusion’s chief executive, said the company is raising the new funding because it wants to ramp up its growth. The company’s patient-physician online platform is “seeing critical mass,” he said, adding that Practice Fusion is also aiming to open up its platform and launch a consumer-facing product.
That requires hiring, with Practice Fusion hiring about 20 new employees a month, said Mr. Howard. The company, with about 180 people now, expects to have close to 300 by the end of the year, he said.
“The top strategic priority is growth,” he said, adding that he views the funding as a “growth” round.
Practice Fusion’s platform is free to use, and the company largely makes revenue from ads. The company said its revenue in the first quarter of the year was “comfortably in the seven figure range,” up more than 500% in the same quarter a year earlier.
