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After being written off by some, Accel Partners returned in 2006 with a vengeance. It had a top-five exit in each of the first three quarters of the year and a near chart-topper in the fourth quarter that may happen next year. Here's a breakdown of some of its portfolio companies' liquidity events:
Q1 - Wily Technology's $375 million sale to CA
Q2 - JBoss' $350 million sale to Red Hat
Q3 - Riverbed Technology's $84 million IPO
Q4 - Facebook sale negotiations
Other highlights from the year included portfolio company Airgo's sale to Qualcomm, an up round for Glam.com, Barry Diller speaking at the firm's CEO Day in November, an ongoing push into China and new rounds for MetaCafe, NetVibes, BitTorrent and Trulia.
It wasn't all great news, though. Accel portfolio company Counterpane, which had raised $78 million from many investors, was sold to BT for a reported $40 million. Still, to get anything for an overfunded startup founded in 1999 should be considered a small victory.
All in all, Accel Partners' 2006 record is undeniable evidence that the firm has regained any luster it lost during the downturn.
Tags: accel+partners, ipo, m&a, vc, venture capital
Congrats to Accel for a great year. But the better measure for firm of the year would be exits vs. fund size. Otherwise the big funds win every year, even if their hit rate is second rate.