Druva raises $147 million at a valuation of over $2 billion. Here's why it chose not to raise a higher sum

Druva, which offers cloud data protection and management solutions to organisations such as NASA, Pfizer, and GameStop, has raised $147 million in its latest round of funding, valuing it at over $2 billion. The round, co-led by Canada's CDPQ and Neuberger Berman, also saw participation from existing investors such as Viking Global Investors and Atreides Management.

"In the last year, we have seen a lot of companies investing in cloud and have seen massive growth in our platform as well. We are already investing in deeper market access and we will double down on that. Acquisitions are always an option," Druva co-founder and CEO Jaspreet Singh told Moneycontrol in an interview from the US. Interestingly, Singh said Druva could have raised double or triple the amount raised but chose not to.

"Resources are important but resourcefulness is more important. Druva could have raised double or triple the amount because there was high demand but sometimes more funding kills creativity and the resourcefulness of an entrepreneur. Wine must grow in a condition that the grape is starving for life, as that is when the taste of wine becomes stronger and denser. Entrepreneurship must struggle for life, solve a real customer pain point and not strive to raise a lot of money, which may not always be the right thing to do," Singh said.

The accelerated shift to digital post-pandemic has helped Druva as it saw rising volumes of stored, rapid adoption of cloud, and deployment of SaaS applications. Regulatory frameworks and cybersecurity concerns have further led to a rise in demand for data protection and management solutions for businesses. Singh also sees a huge opportunity in the Indian market and plans to increase the size of its team here. It currently has a total employee headcount of 870.