Batanga, an online and entertainment company that focuses on the Hispanic community, has secured $30 million in new financing.
The firm, which includes a major operation in Greensboro, N.C., plans to use the Series C funds to expand its product lineup and to step up its marketing.
Batanga backers include Southern Capitol Ventures in Raleigh. However, Southern Capitol did not participate in this round.
“We invested in the very early rounds of Batanga,” said Ben Brooks of Southern Capitol. “That’s no reflection on the company. We are very excited about the future of the company.”
Southern Capitol focuses on early-stage investing.
Leading the new round is Tudor Ventures. H.I.G. Ventures, which had participated in Batanga’s earlier financing, also joined the C round.
Batanga, which also is backed by the Piedmont Angels Investor Network, merged with Planeta Networks in December 2005 to form Hispanic Media, Inc. The company’s headquarters is in Miami, but most of its employees remain in Greensboro.
“The Hispanic online marketplace is one of the fastest-growing segments in the US media market and Batanga is one of the fastest-growing companies in it,” said Rafael Urbina, chairman and chief executive officer of Batanga.
“The Latino demographic trends are so powerful that we foresee strong growth for years to come and hence are very excited to add Tudor to our already strong institutional backing,” he added. “Tudor shares our vision of the market and their involvement will enable us to invest heavily. This ensures we maintain a leadership position in the space and build the first true Latino online brand.”
As part of the deal, Tudor’s Carmen Scarpa will join the Batanga board.
Batanga has been adding marketing resources through the year. The company draws 4.5 million unique visitors per month to its Web site. It also streams 90 million songs and 10 million videos per month.
