HarvardNet Inc, the Boston-based provider of high-speed internet access and web hosting services, has announced the closing of $70m in funding from Paul Allen’s Vulcan Ventures and Denver- based investment firm The Sturm Group. They join existing investors, including Fidelity Ventures, M/C Venture Partners, and Osborn Capital. As part of the funding arrangement, Donald Sturm and Eric Grabli from The Sturm Group and Dino Vendetti from Vulcan Ventures will join HarvardNet’s board.
The funding is expected to cover the company’s cash needs for six to nine months, allowing it to further postpone an initial public offering which the company filed for last June but subsequently put on hold due to market conditions. In the regulatory filing, HarvardNet said it was planning to sell shares worth up to $125m. The company said it will use the newly-acquired funds to drive the continued build-out of its digital subscriber line network from Maine to Virginia.
