Tycoon O’Brien backs US-based storytelling’ start-up Wrap Media

The Sunday Business Post
By Staff
September 6, 2015

 

Denis O’Brien has emerged as an investor in the $18.7 million-backed tech startup Wrap Media , which has just concluded its second substantial fundraising.

Wrap Media has closed a $12.7 million series B investment, which it plans to use to create a “groundbreaking mobile storytelling platform”, according to its own announcement.

O’Brien is one of a small group of investors that have invested in this latest round. Investment also came from merchant bank Raine Group and angel investors.

The San Francisco-based start-up is headed by chief executive Eric Greenberg . Its senior team includes former Yahoo revenue vice president Peter Foster.

The Digicel boss and billionaire has a particular interest in software technology investments in the media space.

On a larger scale, he is involved as an adviser at LetterOne Technology, an investment vehicle set up by Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman , which plans to spend $16 billion on telecom assets in Europe and the US.

O’Brien is an adviser at the fund, along with Lastminute.com founder Brent Hoberman and Vodafone cofounder Julian Horn-Smith.

Separately, Digicel has been extending its investment and assets beyond telecoms into other areas of digital media as consolidation takes place in this space at a global level.

O’Brien recently invested in a tech start-up closer to home through Digicel, which led an investment in UCD-based company HeyStaks of €1.5 million.

Heystaks analyses smartphone behaviour to help mobile operators understand customers’ needs.