Pspdfkit Raises $116M in First Funding Round

A Vienna-Based Startup Secures Significant Funding

A relatively unknown, self-funded company originating from Vienna, Austria, has announced its first external investment. This startup has gained recognition among developers for its technology, which enhances the user experience of numerous globally popular applications.

PSPDFkit's Growth Investment

PSPDFkit, a provider of APIs and SDKs empowering developers with document processing capabilities – including e-signatures, document viewing and editing, and collaborative features – has secured €100 million ($116 million) in funding. The investment comes solely from Insight Partners.

Strategic Use of Funds

PSPDFkit is currently profitable and has been for some time. This investment will primarily accelerate its growth trajectory. The company intends to utilize the funds to develop additional developer tools, pursue strategic acquisitions to broaden its toolset, and, for the first time, significantly invest in sales and marketing initiatives.

Organic Growth and Notable Clients

Much of PSPDFkit’s expansion to date has been driven by word-of-mouth referrals, a strategy that has proven highly effective. Its clientele includes prominent organizations such as Dropbox, DocuSign, SAP, IBM, Volkswagen, Fabasoft, Wolters Kluwer Deutschland, and the European Patent Office, alongside other clients bound by non-disclosure agreements.

Widespread Adoption of PSPDFkit Technology

Many companies prefer not to publicly disclose the extent to which third-party technologies contribute to their user experience. However, PSPDFkit’s impact is substantial. Its APIs and SDKs collectively reach nearly 1 billion users across 150 countries.

Acquisition Interest and Valuation

Given its traction, PSPDFkit has consistently attracted acquisition interest from large technology companies focused on productivity tools, developer relations, mobile applications, and cloud services. While the startup hasn’t revealed its valuation, the recent funding round suggests it has become a more valuable acquisition target.

The Evolution of PSPDFkit

The story of PSPDFkit reflects the maturation of mobile development over the years.

Early Beginnings

The company originated around 2011 as a framework and toolset created by Austrian engineer Peter Steinberger. Recognizing a need within the iOS developer community, he developed document-manipulation features like e-signing and document editing. The rise of apps was transforming experiences, and paper was poised to become obsolete.

The Power of SDKs and APIs

This need highlighted the value of providing such functionality through SDKs and APIs. Document manipulation tools, even basic file previews, are complex to build independently, often fall outside core business functions, yet are essential for operations.

A Pioneering Approach

Steinberger’s framework became an early example of how SDKs and APIs could integrate services into other applications – a principle now applied to various features, including embedded financial services, payments, and communications.

Founding Team and Expansion

As mobile app usage grew, Martin Schürrer joined Steinberger in developing the framework. Jonathan Rhyne, a U.S.-based attorney representing developers, became their legal counsel after meeting them at a developer event.

Transition to a Managed Business

Recognizing the potential for a viable business, and Steinberger and Schürrer’s disinterest in management, Rhyne transitioned from practicing law to become a co-founder in 2014. Steinberger and Schürrer remained in Vienna, while Rhyne operated from North Carolina.

Leadership Changes

With this funding round, Steinberger and Schürrer are transitioning to less active roles, remaining “significantly invested,” while Rhyne continues as CEO.

Adapting to Market Demands

PSPDFkit has evolved alongside the growth of apps, expanding its tools to support Android and the web, utilizing frameworks like Flutter and React Native. The strategy focuses on building a comprehensive platform for document-related functionality and broader productivity tools.

“Obsoleting Paper” and Future Opportunities

Rhyne describes PSPDFkit’s mission as “obsoleting paper.” However, like Stripe’s expansion beyond payments, PSPDFkit sees opportunities to broaden its services, driven by evolving user expectations.

The Impact of the Pandemic

Rhyne noted that a real-time collaboration platform launched in 2015 initially lacked traction. However, the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically shifted demand, with customers now actively seeking such features, indicating a change in how people interact with documents.

Investor Perspective

“Software developers and engineers are on the cutting edge of work simply by the nature of their craft,” stated Ryan Hinkle, MD at Insight Partners. “How they work and collaborate should be on the cutting edge, too. With PSPDFKit’s software development kits and hosted solutions, the company is revolutionizing document processing for enterprises and the developers they task with keeping the company at the forefront of innovation. Insight is thrilled to play a role in the company’s growth journey.” Hinkle will join the board of directors.

A Distributed Workforce

PSPDFkit maintains a distributed operational model, with a primary R&D base in Vienna and employees worldwide, a structure established before the pandemic. The company is continuing to hire using this model.