Trapeze Networks Raises $34 Million in Up Round
Oak Investment Partners leads the Series B round with a $12 million investment
PLEASANTON, Calif. – June 11, 2003 – In one of the largest single rounds of private venture funding this year for a wireless local area networking (WLAN) company, Trapeze Networksâ„? today announced that it raised $34 million in second-round Series B funding, bringing the total investment in the company to $50 million.
Oak Investment Partners of Palo Alto, California led the Series B round with $12 million. Trapeze received additional Series B funding from venture capitalist firms Duff Ackerman & Goodrich and Castile Ventures, investment bankers and financial services firms Trautman Wasserman & Co. and C.E. Unterberg Towbin and its original team of first round investors. In April 2002, the original investors – venture capitalists firms Accel Partners and Redpoint Ventures and a group of Trapeze employees – contributed $16 million in Series A funding.
Trapeze also announced that Bandel Carano, general partner at Oak Investment Partners, was appointed to the company’s board of directors. He joins Peter Wagner of Accel Partners, John Walecka of Redpoint Ventures, Trapeze President and CEO Jim Flach and Engineering Vice President Bill Miskovetz on the board.
“Wireless LANs are revolutionizing the way individuals get connected to the network,” said Carano, whose past investments include 2Wire, Actel, Polycom, Sybase, Synopsys, Wellfleet and Wireless Facilities. “I have tremendous confidence in Trapeze. They have a seasoned executive team and a solution that dramatically improves enterprise WLAN installation and security which brings true differentiation and offers significant customer value.”
“Raising one of the year’s largest rounds of private venture funding in a down market is an incredible achievement,” said Jim Flach, President and CEO for Trapeze Networks. “This will enable us to quickly and aggressively meet the rising customer demand for our wireless LAN solutions while maintaining a strong leadership position in this emerging market.”
About Trapeze Networks
Trapeze Networks (www.trapezenetworks.com) delivers the power of business applications and services to the mobile enterprise workforce. The company’s wireless LAN Mobility Systemâ„? enhances productivity, introduces new efficiencies and accelerates business response time by delivering secure mobility to users, pre- and post-deployment planning and management tools to IT, and seamless integration between wired and wireless networks. Trapeze was founded in March 2002 and is headquartered in Pleasanton, Calif.
About Oak Investment Partners
Oak Investment Partners (www.oakinv.com) is a growth-oriented private equity firm with a total of $4.2 billion in committed capital. Investments are primarily focused on growth opportunities in enterprise application and infrastructure software, telecommunications equipment and services, data storage, financial services technology, outsourced services, healthcare services and retail. Over our 25-year history, Oak has achieved a strong track record as a stage-independent investor funding more than 350 companies at various points in their lifecycle. We have been involved in the formation of companies, provided growth equity to mid- and late-stage businesses and financed management-led buyouts, as well as spinouts of operating divisions and technology assets. Our industry focus and willingness to fund operating losses associated with rapid growth sets Oak apart from traditional private equity investment.