Danny Rimer

Rimer was born in Canada, but grew up in Geneva, Switzerland.{{cite news|last=Heilemann|first=John|title=The venture capital king of Europe|url=https://money.cnn.com/2007/08/08/magazines/business2/rimer_vc.biz2/index.htm|work=CNNMoney|publisher=Cable News Network|access-date=27 February 2011|date=8 August 2007}} After graduating from Harvard University with a Bachelor of Arts in history and literature,{{cite news|last=Forston|first=Danny|title=Danny Rimer: In a nation of shopkeepers, great start-ups don't fly off the shelf|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/danny-rimer-in-a-nation-of-shopkeepers-great-startups-dont-fly-off-the-shelf-481830.html|access-date=27 February 2011|newspaper=The Independent|date=11 June 2006|location=London}} he moved to the San Francisco Bay Area in California.

While in the Bay Area, Rimer and some friends began a company to digitize images of famous artwork and sell the downloads, forging exclusive deals with galleries such as the Louvre and the Uffizi Gallery to commercialize the images.

In 1994, Rimer joined Hambrecht & Quist (now owned by JP Morgan), where he began an Internet sector equity research group.{{cite web|title=8 Rising VC Stars: Danny Rimer|url=http://www.fortunesmallbusiness.com/galleries/2008/fortune/0807/gallery.lashinsky_newkleiner.fortune/4.html|work=CNNMoney|publisher=Cable News Network|access-date=27 February 2011}} He was managing director and underwriting analyst for Amazon, Netscape and Verisign. and helped to take Netscape public.

Rimer became a general partner of The Barksdale Group in 1999, where he invested in a dozen companies including Crossgain (acquired by BEA Systems), Ofoto (acquired by Kodak) and Tellme Networks (acquired by Microsoft), before joining Index in 2002 to establish the London office. He later co-founded the San Francisco office in 2012 with Index partner Mike Volpi.{{cite news|last1=Ashton|first1=James|title=Danny Rimer from Index Ventures: The Silicon Valley Exile Who Sees A New Internet Gold Rush On the Way|url=https://www.standard.co.uk/business/markets/danny-rimer-from-index-ventures-the-silicon-valley-exile-who-sees-a-new-internet-gold-rush-on-the-way-8753770.html|access-date=7 April 2015|publisher=London Evening Standard|date=9 August 2013}}

In his early years at Index, Rimer made a series of notable investments in infrastructure and services companies such as Skype, MySQL and Last.fm (acquired by CBS for $280 million).{{cite news|title=CBS Acquires Europe's Last.fm for $280 million|url=https://techcrunch.com/2007/05/30/cbs-acquires-lastfm-for-280m/|publisher=TechCrunch|date=May 20, 2007}}

He later led the firm’s investments in 1stdibs, Anki, Boku, Dropbox ({{NASDAQ|DBX}}) (in which he led a series B round investment of $250 million in 2011),{{cite news |title= Dropbox Raises $250M In Funding, Boasts 45 Million Users|url= https://techcrunch.com/2011/10/18/dropbox-raises-250m-in-funding-boasts-45-million-users/ |work= TechCrunch |date= October 18, 2011}} Etsy ({{NASDAQ|ETSY}}), Farfetch ({{NYSE|FTCH}}), Flipboard, King (acquired by Activision in 2016 for $5.9 billion),{{cite web |date=23 February 2016 |url=http://www.gamespot.com/articles/activision-blizzard-becomes-largest-game-network-i/1100-6435014/ |title=Activision Blizzard Becomes "Largest Game Network in the World" With Candy Crush Dev Buyout |publisher=GameSpot |access-date=23 February 2016}} Zesty, and Beauty Pie,{{Cite news|last=Paton|first=Elizabeth|date=2020-12-16|title=Makeup Without the Markup|language=en-US|work=The New York Times|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/16/fashion/makeup-without-the-markup.html|access-date=2021-01-22|issn=0362-4331}} among others.{{cite web|title=Danny Rimer|url=http://indexventures.com/team/danny-rimer|website=Index Ventures|access-date=7 April 2015}}

More recently, Rimer has received growing public attention for leading Index's investments in Discord, Patreon, Glossier, Beauty Pie, Otrium, Grailed, and Goat.{{Cite web |last=Martin |first=Iain |title=How This European VC Landed A $2.6 Billion Windfall From Adobe's Figma Takeover |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/iainmartin/2022/12/08/danny-rimer-midas-europe-index-figma-adobe/ |access-date=2023-05-13 |website=Forbes |language=en}} Most notable among his latest batch of investments is Figma, an online collaborative design platform. Index wrote a seed-stage check for Figma in 2013.{{Cite web |title=The Story of Figma: Collaboration, Community and Creativity {{!}} by Danny Rimer |url=https://www.indexventures.com/perspectives/the-story-of-figma-collaboration-community-and-creativity/ |access-date=2023-05-13 |website=Index Ventures |language=en}} In 2022, Adobe announced it would acquire Figma for $20 billion, making Index's share of the company worth $2.6 billion if the deal closes.{{Cite web |last=Martin |first=Iain |title=How This European VC Landed A $2.6 Billion Windfall From Adobe's Figma Takeover |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/iainmartin/2022/12/08/danny-rimer-midas-europe-index-figma-adobe/ |access-date=2023-05-13 |website=Forbes |language=en}} However, numerous news reports indicated that the U.S. Department of Justice may sue to block the acquisition for violating anti-trust rules.{{Cite web |title=Adobe's $20B Deal for Figma Reportedly Faces DOJ Opposition |url=https://www.cnet.com/tech/services-and-software/adobes-20b-deal-for-figma-reportedly-faces-doj-opposition/ |access-date=2023-05-13 |website=CNET |language=en}} The deal eventually terminated due to regulatory pressure from the European Commission.{{Cite web |last=Roush |first=Ty |title=Adobe Terminates $20 Billion Deal For Figma—Both Firms Say There's 'No Clear Path' For Regulator Approval |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2023/12/18/adobe-terminates-20-billion-deal-for-figma-both-firms-say-theres-no-clear-path-for-regulator-approval/ |access-date=2025-03-13 |website=Forbes |language=en}}

Rimer was previously a director at KVS (acquired by Veritas in 2004 for $225 million);{{cite news|title=Veritas Acquires KVS, Gains E-Mail Archiving Capabilities|url=http://www.crn.com/news/storage/46200285/veritas-acquires-kvs-gains-e-mail-archiving-capabilities.htm|date=August 31, 2004|publisher=CRN}} Last.fm, Lovefilm (known as "The Netflix of Europe," acquired by Amazon in 2011 for $317 million);{{cite news |title= Amazon Acquires LoveFilm, The Netflix of Europe|url=https://techcrunch.com/2011/01/20/amazon-acquires-lovefilm-the-netflix-of-europe/|date= 12 May 2010}} MySQL (acquired by Sun Microsystems in 2008 for $1 billion and now part of Oracle);{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2008/01/16/sun-picks-up-mysql-for-1-billion-open-source-is-a-legitimate-business-model/ |title=Sun Picks Up MySQL For $1 Billion; Open Source Is A Legitimate Business Model |date= |access-date=13 October 2012}}

Neoteris (acquired by NetScreen in 2003 for $245{{cite web |title= NetScreen To Acquire Neoteris, SSL VPN Market Leader |url= http://juniper.mwnewsroom.com/manual-releases/2003/NetScreen-To-Acquire-Neoteris,-SSL-VPN-Market-Lead|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120419010639/http://juniper.mwnewsroom.com/manual-releases/2003/NetScreen-To-Acquire-Neoteris,-SSL-VPN-Market-Lead|url-status= usurped|archive-date= 19 April 2012}} and now part of Juniper Networks); Sky PLC ({{LSE|SKY}}); Skype (acquired by eBay in 2005 for $2.6 billion and then by Microsoft in 2011 for $8.5 billion);{{cite news |title= EBay Buys Skype for $2.6 Billion |url= http://www.pcworld.com/article/122516/article.html |work= PC World |date= September 12, 2005 |access-date= 15 July 2016 |archive-date= 14 November 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20201114001307/https://www.pcworld.com/article/122516/article.html |url-status= dead }}{{cite news |title= Why Microsoft Is Buying Skype for $8.5 Billion |url=http://gigaom.com/2011/05/09/why-microsoft-is-buying-skype-for-8-billion/ |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130921020453/http://gigaom.com/2011/05/09/why-microsoft-is-buying-skype-for-8-billion/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=21 September 2013 |work= GigaOM |date= May 9, 2011}} and TrialPay (acquired by Visa in February 2017.{{cite news |title= Visa Announces Acquisition Of TrialPay To Expand Its Offers Platform |url=https://techcrunch.com/2015/02/27/visa-announces-acquisition-of-trialpay-to-expand-its-offers-platform/ |work= TechCrunch |date= 27 February 2015}}

Rimer's various awards and honors include:

• The Forbes Midas List of top global VCs, to which he has been named 11 times{{cite web |title= Forbes Profile: Danny Rimer |website= Forbes|url= https://www.forbes.com/profile/danny-rimer/}}{{cite news|title=Danny Rimer|url=https://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/99/XU7W.html|work=Midas List|publisher=Forbes.com, Inc.|access-date=27 February 2011}}{{cite news|title=Danny Rimer|url=https://www.forbes.com/midas/#tab:overall_page:4|work=Midas List|publisher=Forbes.com, Inc.|access-date=7 April 2015}}{{cite news|title=Danny Rimer|url=https://www.forbes.com/pictures/mll45ldhk/danny-rimer/|access-date=1 April 2016|issue=Midas List|work=Forbes}}
• The Forbes Midas List of European VCs, to which he has been nominated in 2019 {{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/midas/europe/|title=The Midas List Europe 2019|website=Forbes|language=en|access-date=2019-12-02}}
• Fortune magazine's 40 under 40 list of business’s rising young stars.{{cite news|title=Fortune magazine 40 Under 40 2009|url=https://money.cnn.com/galleries/2009/fortune/0910/gallery.40_under_40.fortune/30.html|publisher=Fortune|access-date=9 May 2018|archive-date=2 August 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190802133731/https://archive.fortune.com/galleries/2009/fortune/0910/gallery.40_under_40.fortune/30.html|url-status=live}}
• The New York Times' and CB Insights' list of the Top 20 Venture Capitalists Worldwide, each year since the list's inception (2016 through 2018){{cite news|title=The Top 20 Venture Capital Investors Worldwide|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/03/13/technology/venture-capital-investor-top-20.html|access-date=1 April 2016|work=The New York Times|date=March 13, 2016}}{{cite news|title=The Top 20 Venture Capital Investors Worldwide|url=https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/03/27/technology/Top-20-Venture-Capitalists.html|work=The New York Times|date=March 27, 2017}}{{cite web |title= The Top 100 Venture Capitalists |url= https://www.cbinsights.com/research/top-venture-capital-partners/}}
• Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for service to business and charity.{{London Gazette|issue=61803|supp=y|page=N14|date=31 December 2016}}

He is a fixture at the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference, an annual gathering of business leaders, political figures, and major figures in the philanthropic and cultural spheres.{{cite news|title=Sun Valley: Where the money is|url=http://blogs.reuters.com/mediafile/2009/07/08/hold-sun-valley-where-the-money-is/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090711122927/http://blogs.reuters.com/mediafile/2009/07/08/hold-sun-valley-where-the-money-is/|url-status=dead|archive-date=11 July 2009|work=MediaFile|publisher=Thomson Reuters|access-date=1 March 2011|date=8 July 2009}}

Rimer serves on the board of Maggie’s Cancer Caring Centres, a network of drop-in healthcare centers across the United Kingdom and Hong Kong, with the aim of helping cancer patients. He was formerly on the board of trustees at San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA).

{{Reflist}}

• [https://www.nytimes.com/2018/07/09/business/dealbook/index-ventures-funds.html "Index Ventures Has Been on a Run. Now It’s Raising Funds to Keep It Up."], The New York Times, July 9, 2018.

{{commons category}}

• [http://www.indexventures.com Index Ventures website]

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Category:Living people

Category:Canadian venture capitalists

Category:1970 births

Category:Businesspeople from London

Category:Harvard University alumni

Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire