M3 raises $2.7M; Ed Crutchfield, Tony Prince join Charlotte startup
CHARLOTTE – M3 Technology Group has received a $2.7 million infusion of capital that includes investments from Frontier Capital, retired Charlotte banker Ed Crutchfield and veteran entrepreneur Tony Prince.
In addition, Prince has been named chief executive of M3, a technology-consulting company. And Crutchfield, former CEO of Wachovia Corp. predecessor First Union Corp., will play an active role as an adviser to the firm.
“I have invested with and worked with Tony Prince for several years,” Crutchfield says in a prepared statement. “He is an excellent CEO. He understands technology, customer service and he is a proven leader.”
Prince’s appointment was effective Tuesday. He succeeds Michael Byrnes as CEO.
Byrnes and fellow M3 co-founder Mark Whetstone remain with the company in an advisory capacity, says Rick Oppedisano, vice president of marketing.
During discussions about two weeks ago regarding a new round of funding for M3, company officials and Frontier representatives agreed to make Prince the new CEO, Oppedisano says. “They mutually decided Tony has the skill set to take the company to the next level.”
Prince joins M3 from LURHQ, an information-technology managed-security company he founded in 1996 in Myrtle Beach, S.C. LURHQ merged with Atlanta-based Secure Works in 2006.
He welcomes Crutchfield’s involvement with M3. “We are excited to have a leader of Mr. Crutchfield’s caliber investing in M3TG and contributing his experience and long-term approach to building business value,” Prince says.
M3 was founded in 2002. Its services include assessing, designing, delivering and managing corporate e-mail and related infrastructure for companies that are migrating to a new platform or looking to outsource the support of their existing platforms.
The locally based company has about 100 employees. Roughly 80 of them are in Charlotte, with the rest working from satellite offices around the country.
Charlotte-based Frontier invested $6.5 million in the company last November. At the time, the private-equity firm said its investment would support M3’s growth efforts, including product development and expansion of its services team.
Frontier invests in companies throughout the Southeast and mid-Atlantic regions.
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