The founders of telefonboksapp company TrueCaller, Nami Zarringhalam and Alan Mamedi. Photo: Lars Pehrson
I had to ride to India to seriously understand the greatness of the Swedish starting lineup TrueCaller. It was only there, on location in New Dehlis teeming sea of people as it became clear which part of everyday life as Alan Mamedis and Nami Zarringhalams Phonebook app actually become for millions and millions of people.
In principle, all people with a cell phone instantly knew what TrueCaller was and showed happily up the Swedish company’s app when asked. This had the app, with over 1 billion telephone number registered, among other things, has become an effective tool to block unwanted calls.
It is now almost two years then I followed Nami Zarringhalam notched heel a few hectic days in New Dehlis tech hub of Gurgaon. Then had TrueCaller around 25 million Indian users. Now that number has doubled several times and at the end of the year will TrueCaller have 150 million users – only in India.
– Have you been there after we were there together? It is even better now, says Nami Zarringhalam when he and Alan Mamedi receives Breakit in one of Truecallers meeting on Kungsgatan in central Stockholm.
To get to an interview with the two together have taken months. The two entrepreneurs have a high tempo (“working around 12 hours a day in the week”) and are often in different continents. TrueCaller has offices in San Francisco, Lagos, Dubai, New Delhi and Bangalore.
Should we really celebrate that we got 100 million users to?
– It is easy to be blinded by speed. Earlier we celebrated every little milestone but now we ask ourselves – are we really celebrating that we got 100 million users, says Alan Mamedi.
Whether he or Nami Zarringhalam want to give any forecast on the number of users by year-end but they have previously said that “the plan is half a billion users by the end of 2015″.
– In total, we are increasing with over 350 000 users per day now. Another strong point is that 60 percent of our users use the app daily. It makes us very attractive among investors – they hear of each week, but right now we have no capital, “said Alan Mamedi.
A year ago they received 430 million SEK in venture capital from reputable venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & amp; Byers and Skype founder Niklas Zennström’s Atomico companies. According to tech site TechCrunch is TrueCaller now on track to bring in additional just over SEK 800 million in a transaction that would value the entire Trucaller to 1 billion dollars.
– In our last round we declined investors offered us a higher valuation compared to them, we finally took in. We simply wanted the Niklas Zennstrom and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & amp; Byers. One of the two investors, we reduced the actual valuation of the volunteer. The important thing was not the precise valuation, but we got the right investors, said Alan Mamedi.
Nami Zarringhalam (left), Truecallers CEO, Kari Krishnamurthy, country manager of India in Stockholm. Photo: Christine Olsson / TT
But the two entrepreneurs has not always been able to pick and choose among the investors. As late as April 2013 stood TrueCaller on brink of ruin. The money for the salaries of the then 12 employees would be enough in one or at best two months. Alan Mamedi and Nami Zarringhalam had met lots of investors both in Europe and the USA but, despite growth in the number of users was strong, no one wanted to inject money. More or less by chance they got in the position in contact with the American star investor Jerry Murdock.
– In a meeting with his venture capital firm we started, just because we were curious, what happened to Path (a mobile social networking, ed’s note). Jerry was not in the meeting, but after a few hours he called me up and we had a very good conversation, remembers Alan Mamedi.
– In a meeting with his venture capital firm, which unfortunately declined to invest, asked we are out of curiosity how it went Path, an investment Jerry had led (a mobile social network, Breakits note). Two hours after the call rang Jerry us up and asked what we had questions about Path, remembers Alan Mamedi.
It was a successful call True Caller-contractors which ended with Jerry Murdock invited home the two to dinner. Maybe this was their last chance to avoid bankruptcy? TrueCaller founders bet everything on one card. Although the venture capitalist Murdock lived in Aspen in the state of Colorado did not hesitate a second.
It stung really buying expensive airline tickets at short notice.
– It stung really buying expensive airline tickets on short notice, though it felt like we had so much to lose, says Alan Mamedi.
But when the dinner in Jerry Murdock fleet villa was completed wondered both he and Nami Zarringhalam unless the trip was a mistake.
– We had no answer to a single one of Jerry’s questions. It became apparent that we did not have good enough control of our own business, says Alan Mamedi.
Whether he or Nami Zarringhalam dared not ask the critical question – do you want to invest in our company? But something must nevertheless Jerry Murdock have liked of the two entrepreneurs, for not long after their dinner in Aspen, he heard back from them.
– Jerry was then in Paris and asked if we wanted to have breakfast with him the day next. We were not exactly accustomed to fly to Paris for breakfast but what we had for elections, says Alan Mamedi.
After meeting in Aspen he and Nami Zarringhalam also done their homework around it own company much better and it was a good discussion. But not this time daring entrepreneurs ask about Jerry Murdock was willing to go in with money. Though it would prove to be a superfluous question in this context.
– When we got home, called Jerry and asked how much money we needed. Five minutes after we put up the phone, I received an SMS from him in which he asked for our account so he could send the money, says Alan Mamedi.
Total joined Jerry Murdock in with SEK 1 million and, in addition, he opened up their entire business network for Swedish entrepreneurs. Truecallers future was assured.
Today, Jerry Murdock of Alan Mamedis key strategic advisor and he also sits on the board of TrueCaller.
– We heard in basically every day. His advice is incredibly important to me, says Alan Mamedi.
In connection with the latest round of funding last autumn TrueCaller additional two real heavyweights of the American tech world of the Board – John Doerr and Bing Gordon (formally only are alternate, but attends all board meetings). Doerr is already including Google’s board and Gordon have a seat on the board of the e-commerce giant Amazon.
– For us it is an incredible value to bring in people like John and Bing in the organization. I was incredibly curious about how Jeff Bezos (Amazon’s founder, ed. Note) put up their board meetings in the Amazon. Being able to get the insight directly from a sitting to which is fantastic, says Alan Mamedi.
Bing Gordon told him that Jeff Bezos always looking to have an empty chair next to him at all Board meetings.
– Jeff Bezos wants in this way to show that this is where the customer is located. The person should always keep in mind when taking their decision, says Alan Mamedi.
When he called the first board meeting he wanted and Nami Zarringhalam try to reach at least the same level as Amazon founder:
– We invited our TrueCaller ambassador from Lebanon and he told me a story about his friend met his future wife through True Caller. The story lifted the entire board, says Alan Mamedi.
Despite the valuation at many billion is Truecallers turnover remains modest and last year the company made a loss of as much as 85 million.
During the next year the plan is to TrueCaller will start making money. But Alan Mamedi make no big deal of it, but shows instead that his focus remains on growth.
– There is still growth our priority. Revenue is not our primary focus in the current situation, says Alan Mamedi.
Exactly how TrueCaller will fail to live up to the high valuation, he does not go into but still gives a glimpse of the potential by pointing to an interesting use – the identification of people.
TrueCaller has become the Indians’ passports.
– In India it failed to introducing civic six months ago. Which has TrueCaller instead become like their passports. Klarna use the public records to validate their customers but that kind of records do not exist in many countries. I think that this can create very many exciting opportunities for us in a few years.
So you could be the equivalent of the Swedish banks’ bank ID in other countries?
– Bank ID sounds so boring but certainly we could partly get that feature. Within a few years, I think TrueCaller will be an important platform for different types of transactions. Already matches other companies of information from TrueCaller to identify and authenticate people. There is such an app in the US who agree with Truecallers database before authorizing a person to receive a loan or not.
Therefore, it is time for Spotify to take up the fight – with TicketMaster
Here are the companies that have raised the most money from investors for years
No comments:
Post a Comment