Today’s funding announcements include companies that measure vital signs, print stationary and treat rare diseases:
Basis brings in $9M for health and wellness tech: The San Francisco-based company, formally known as Pulse Tracer, has raised a first round of funding co-led by Norwest Venture Partners (NVP) and Doll Capital Management (DCM). The company’s first consumer product, Basis Band, is a watch-like device that measures heart rate and other vital signs of the wearer. The product, which uses game mechanics and connects to mobile and web devices via Bluetooth, is available for pre-order on the company’s web site for $199. According to investor Tim Chang of NVP, Basis recently hired a “superstar CEO” but has not yet announced who it is.
Shutterfly to acquire stationary maker Tiny Prints for $333M: Photo publishing service Shutterfly is acquiring Tiny Prints, a customizable stationary company based in Sunnyvale, Calif., for $141M in cash and 3.9M shares of Shutterfly stock. Founded in 2004, Tiny Prints raised funding from Technology Crossover Ventures and Summit Partners in 2008 to produce stationary for TinyPrints.com and WeddingPaperDivas.com. All three Tiny Prints co-founders will join Shutterfly’s staff.
Synageva Biopharma grabs $25M to focus on rare diseases: The biopharmaceutical company has raised a new round of funding, bringing its total funding to more than $70M in the past two years, peHUB reports. Based in Lexington, Mass., the company develops therapies for patients with rare diseases that are currently under-served.
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STELLAService gets $2M to rate retailers’ customer service: The New York-based provider of objective customer service ratings has raised a new round of funding led by Battery Ventures and DFJ Gotham. An alumnus of the entrepreneur community Dogpatch Labs New York, the company hires full-time customer experience analysts to rate retailers based on criteria like usability, policy on returns and customer support.
