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Docker goes double unicorn with $105m Series C funding and $2.1b valuation

Troubled container company may escape confines of its doldrums

Docker hasn't just got back in the fight thanks to its latest round of funding: it's earned double-unicorn status, too. 

The long-suffering containerization company today announced a $105 million Series C funding round led by Bain Capital Ventures bringing its total funding to $163 million, and a company valuation of $2.1 billion. Bain's Enrique Salem, former CEO of Symantec, will join Docker's board as part of the deal. 

Docker's days seemed numbered until this turnaround, which comes on the tail of earlier good news that the biz saw 4x year-over-year ARR growth last year. In 2019, Docker was in dire enough straits to sell off its enterprise division, replace CEO Rob Bearden, and refocus itself as a developer platform. As recent as mid-2021, the outfit was still having trouble finding its footing and a successful business model. 

"Together we have focused on the needs of developers, to help them quickly and safely build, share, and run any app, anywhere. As tens of millions of new developers join the market this decade, this funding enables us to go faster in solving problems for this next generation," said Docker CEO, and Bearden's replacement, Scott Johnson. He has been with Docker since 2014, and previously served as its COO, CPO, and an SVP for product management and design. 

Docker said it has helped development teams release software 13x more frequently, integrate technologies into production in 65 percent less time, and reduced vulnerability remediation by 62 percent. Those factors, Docker said, were what drove its rebound as demand for new applications, increasingly complex cloud-native products and software supply chain attacks have spiked. 

Docker said it has more than 56,000 commercial customers in recent years, and counts among its numbers "over 70 percent of the Fortune 100, nine of the 10 top technology companies, eight of the top 10 banks, eight of the top 10 retailers, eight of the top 10 media companies, and seven of the top 10 healthcare companies."

The funds it has collected from Bain, along with new investors Atlassian Ventures, Citi Ventures, Vertex Ventures and Four Rivers, and existing investors Benchmark, Insight Partners and Tribe Capital, will go toward products and go-to-market initiatives. 

Docker didn't explain specifically what that means outside of saying product investment will involve developer productivity, trusted content and ecosystem partnerships, while go-to-market investments will involve expanding into new channels and global regions. ®

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