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"We're proud to honor and play a role in the maturing, growth and success of venture-backed companies throughout the US," said Bryan Pearce, head of Ernst & Young LLP's Americas Venture Capital Advisory Group. "This year's Venture Capital Award of Excellence winners demonstrate how venture capital fuels entrepreneurial success and innovation."
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The Venture Capital (VC) Award of Excellence recognizes Ernst & Young LLP's Entrepreneur Of The Year® regional winners whose companies have been backed by venture capital funding. Out of more than 50 regional 2009 Entrepreneur of the Year winners who have benefited from VC funding, these honorees were selected by an independent panel of judges from leading VC firms, including Bain Capital Ventures, Fidelity Ventures, MPM Capital, NewSpring Ventures, Sequoia Capital and Technology Cross Ventures.
"Square 1 Bank's commitment to the venture capital community has never wavered," said Susan Casey, Founder and Executive Vice President, Credit and Banking, of Square 1 Bank. "VC firms have played such a vital role in making entrepreneurial visions a reality that we are thrilled to be a part of Ernst & Young's VC Award of Excellence program."
For this recognition, venture-backed enterprises were analyzed by the amount of VC funding on the basis of equity and revenue growth, EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) margins, and the stories of their founding. Highlights from the 2009 VC Award of Excellence winners' stories include:
About Ernst & Young's Strategic Growth Markets Network
Ernst & Young's worldwide Strategic Growth Markets Network is dedicated to serving the changing needs of rapid-growth companies. For more than 30 years, we've helped many of the world's most dynamic and ambitious companies grow into market leaders. Whether working with international mid-cap companies or early stage venture-backed businesses, our professionals draw upon their extensive experience, insight and global resources to help your business achieve its potential. It's how Ernst & Young makes a difference.
About Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Worldwide, our 144,000 people are united by our shared values and an unwavering commitment to quality. We make a difference by helping our people, our clients and our wider communities achieve their potential.
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This news release has been issued by Ernst & Young LLP, a U.S. client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited.
About Square 1 Bank
Square 1 Bank is a full service commercial bank dedicated exclusively to serving the financial needs of the venture capital community and entrepreneurs in all stages of growth and expansion. Square 1's expertise, focus and strong capital base provide solid support for its clients' needs. The bank offers tailored products and solutions aided by the latest in technological innovations. To serve its relationships, Square 1 has offices coast to coast in Austin, Boston, Boulder, Durham, McLean, New York, San Diego, Santa Monica, Seattle and Silicon Valley. For more information, visit www.square1bank.com.
-- Akamai Technologies Inc. of Cambridge, Massachusetts - A winner of Ernst & Young LLP's 2009 national Technology Entrepreneur of the Year, President and CEO, Paul Sagan and Akamai's founders, Tom Leighton and Dan Lewin, changed the way business is done on the web in less than a decade. Leighton and Lewin improved the information-processing method that ended what was known as the "World Wide Wait" by attracting funding from Battery Venture Partners and Polaris Venture Partners and earning an exclusive license to intellectual property from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Under Sagan's leadership, Akamai withstood the setbacks of the tech bubble and experienced pivotal improvements in customer service. Today, Akamai offers the most widely used platform for content delivery globally, featuring application acceleration with more than 42,000 servers in 70 countries and 1,000 networks. Its 2008 revenues of $790 million rose 24% over the previous year.
SOURCE Ernst & Young LLP
