ID5 raises $6 million in Series A funding

Published: 31 Mar 2021

The identity specialist will use the funds to expand its operations and provide the digital advertising ecosystem with the infrastructure required to challenge Google’s dominance 

London and Paris, 1pm EDT 29 March - ID5, the leading independent identity solution provider, announces a “series A” funding round of $6 million.  Alliance Entreprendre and Progress Ventures join existing lead investor 360 Capital Partners to support ID5 in growing its privacy-first identification service for the benefit of the whole digital advertising ecosystem. 

ID5 will use the funds to expand its operations globally, focusing on the US market. The company will invest in its technology infrastructure, further develop its products and grow its team.  

Since its launch in 2017, ID5 has been working towards the creation of an efficient identification infrastructure that supports media owners and respects users’ privacy choices. The technology has been adopted by hundreds of publishers and ad tech platforms globally, enabling ID5 to boost its global reach to over 600 million consumers daily and increase the value of its Universal ID service. 

According to Kristina Prokop, CEO and Co-founder at Eyeota “Rebuilding user identification with a privacy-first approach is a necessary step for the digital advertising ecosystem. As a partner of ID5, we are supportive of their efforts to lead the change for the industry.” 

“The advertising industry is facing a pivotal moment as we look toward a cookieless future. At MediaMath, we are hyper-focused on advocating for the right solutions that will work for consumers and the industry at large,” says Joe Zawadzki, founder and Chief Executive Officer at MediaMath. “Industry investment in solutions like ID5’s that provide a privacy-safe open web version of Google’s privacy sandbox underscores the importance of a strong ecosystem, and advances our vision for a cookieless Identity marketplace and powering an accountable, addressable and aligned digital media supply chain.” 

“PubMatic is committed to building a sustainable addressable advertising ecosystem that drives superior monetization for publishers and increased ROI for advertisers.” says Andrew Baron, Senior Vice President, Marketplace & Identity at PubMatic. “By partnering with ID5 and enabling their ID through our Identity Hub solution, we are able to drive innovation and opportunity on the open internet. Our publishers can take advantage of ID5’s unique deterministic and probabilistic methods to achieve scale and accuracy.” 

“Closing this round now, in the wake of recent announcements by Google and Apple, is a strong signal sent to the market that there are alternatives to the Walled Gardens” says Mathieu Roche, co-founder and CEO of ID5. “We have seen tremendous adoption of Universal ID, our cookie-less identification service, by publishers and ad tech platforms. The backing of leading US and European investors gives us further means to achieve our ambition to become the global ID infrastructure powering digital advertising.“ 

“The identity space has grown significantly since Google announced the deprecation of third-party cookies in Chrome” says Adriaan Zur Muhlen, Managing Partner, Progress Ventures. “Many companies have jumped on the opportunity to create a cookie-less identifier, but ID5 has a significant head start. The company has already spent three years educating the industry on the importance of creating a privacy-first identification system and has built a strong network of publishers and ad tech platforms leveraging their ID.  We are excited to support their next stage of growth, and their vision of the digital future, particularly as they increase their focus on the US market.” 

Antoine Bodet, Executive Director at Alliance Entreprendre, confirms, “we have invested in ID5 because of their first-mover advantage, combined with a clear long term vision carried by an experienced team of ad tech specialists.  ID5’s European roots and strong connections with media owners has enabled the company to better understand users’ and publishers’ needs. They have built an inclusive offering that benefits all types of publishers, as well as their monetisation partners, in their efforts to stay competitive in a marketplace dominated by tech giants.” 

“We are happy to continue to support ID5’s effort to solve one of the biggest challenges that digital advertising has ever faced” says François Tison, General Partner, 360 Capital Partners. “The ID5 team has done an amazing job creating and scaling a strong replacement solution for cookies and MAIDs, their time-to-market has been perfect, and we are confident they can support the industry in this critical transition” added Tison. 

About ID5

ID5 was created to improve online advertising for consumers, media owners and advertisers, with the ultimate goal to help publishers grow sustainable revenue.

 

ID5 provides the advertising ecosystem with a transparent, scalable and privacy-compliant identity infrastructure. Its solutions improve user recognition and match rates and provide a stable, consented and encrypted user ID to replace third-party cookies and MAIDs. This enables publishers to better monetise their audiences, advertisers to run effective and measurable campaigns, and platforms to maximise the value of data and inventory for their customers. 

Created in 2017 by seasoned ad tech professionals, ID5 services clients globally. For more information about ID5 and its solutions, please visit: www.id5.io 

About Progress Ventures

Progress Ventures is the venture capital arm of Progress Partners, a full-service merchant bank specializing in the advertising, marketing, and media technology sectors. As a sector specialist fund, Progress Ventures is building value for the digital future by investing in B2B companies focused on disruptive technologies. With decades of experience and an extensive relationship network the fund intimately understands the nuanced market dynamics and the innovative players who are propelling the industry forward. Bold partners with a future vision for the sector, the fund takes a proactive approach to sourcing opportunities and working with entrepreneurial leaders on the cutting edge of advertising, marketing, and media technology. 

About Alliance Entreprendre

Alliance Entreprendre is a Paris-based Management Company specialized in Private Equity. Founded in 1995, the firm manages and advises over €480M of assets for institutional and retail investors as of December 31, 2020. Alliance Entreprendre is dedicated to the Small Cap market through three activities: buyout, growth and venture capital, and has invested in more than 230 companies since its inception. Alliance Entreprendre is a signatory of the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) and supports companies’ social and environmental transformation in view to combining commitment with the quest for performance. 

About 360 Capital Partners

360 Capital is a Venture Capital firm investing in early stage, innovative deeptech and digital enterprises across Europe. The firm has a 20-year track record of supporting talented tech entrepreneurs in developing ambitious and disruptive companies in a variety of sectors. Led by a diverse and experienced team of professionals located in Paris and Milan, 360 Capital has €400M of assets under management and an active portfolio of over 50 companies.

 

To find out more: www.360cap.vc