Funding Daily: March 13, 2014

Here are the day’s funding stories:

Online education site Renaissance Learning sells for $1.1B a month after Google Capital invests

Here’s yet another big move for online education. Renaissance Learning, an online learning analytics and assessment company, announced today that it has sold for $1.1 billion to private equity firm Hellman & Friedman. Read more on VentureBeat.

Eventbrite raises $60M at $1B valuation

Eventbrite has apparently joined Silicon Valley’s exclusive $1 billion “Unicorn Club.” The online ticketing service has raised $60 million in newfinancing, Eventbrite told VentureBeat on Thursday. The funding round values the company at more than $1 billion. The investors are Tiger Global Management and T. Rowe Price, which reportedly wanted a bigger ownership stake and offered Eventbrite terms it was unlikely to refuse. Read more on VentureBeat.

MuleSoft raises $50M to connect every business app to every other business app

Most businesses use more than one piece of software. If they want to send data from one application to another, they could take time to write custom code, or they could use services designed for that purpose. The thing is, multiple application-connecting services exist. MuleSoft, one of the more popular ones, wants to fend off competitors and keep adding customers. Today the company announced a new $50 million in funding, which should help it keep growing despite the competition from new and existing competition. Read more on VentureBeat.

Xapo raises $20M to be a Bitcoin digital wallet and vault

“We’re excited to bring Xapo to Bitcoin users and we welcome you to open your free account today. But we’re even more driven by what’s to come as Bitcoin adoption continues to grow. That’s why today we’re also announcing $20 million in Series A funding led by Benchmark, with Fortress Investment Group and Ribbit Capital. We’re proud to work alongside some of the best backers in the venture capital and financial industries. We envision a long and adventurous journey ahead and believe our new partners have strengthened our team and widened the opportunity for Bitcoin’s growth,” said Wences Casares, Xapo founder and chief executive, in a blog post about the funding. Read the rest on Xapo’s blog.

Nexstar Broadcasting to buy Internet Broadcasting Systems for $20M

“Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc. announced today that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire the assets of Internet Broadcasting Systems, Inc. (“IB”), a leading digital publishing platform and digital agency services provider for $20.0 million in a transaction that is expected to be accretive to 2014 results. The acquisition will be funded through internal sources and is expected to close later this month. “Read the press release.

Smart Sparrow raises $10M to make studying online feel less lonely

Despite the potential for online courses to democratize higher education, the sector has experienced setbacks lately. A major cause for these disappointing results, some claim, is the extremely common feeling of disconnectedness among students. This lack of engagement is a problem that Smart Sparrow believes it can solve. The company announced a fresh $10 million round of funding today to fuel its expansion. Yellow Brick Capital led the round. Read more on VentureBeat.

Klutch snags $1.5M in hopes of making group scheduling mainstream

Group messaging startup GroupMe sold for $85 million just over a year after launch. Klutch believes group scheduling has just as much potential. With $1.5 million in fresh capital led by Los Angeles, Calif. startup accelerator LaunchpadLA, Klutch is debuting today on iOS. The group scheduling app enables users to suggest meetings, vote on plans, and group chat about the get-together. Read more on VentuBeat.

Appgyver raises $450K to keep making mobile development a breeze

In a filing today with the SEC, we learned that Appgyver raised $450,000 in what appears to be a bridge round. Previously, the startup raised $1,325,000. Appgyver makes a rapid mobile development toolkit. The company was founded in 2011 and is based in San Francisco and Helsinki, Finland.