• D: All Things Digital, Wednesday, July 22, 2009 2:43 PM

Ning, a startup that helps people easily set up their own social networks, has raised $15 million in a financing round that values the company at a whopping $750 million, Kara Swisher reports. The startup's last funding round of $60 million a little more than a year ago valued it at $500 million. The money for this fifth Series E round comes from Silicon Valley venture capital firm Lightspeed Venture Partners.

Chairman Marc Andreessen and CEO Gina Bianchini founded Ning. Other investors in the company include LinkedIn Chairman Reid Hoffman, Legg Mason and Allen & Co. The $15 million round, which the firm was not actively seeking, brings the total funds raised by the company to $119 million.

Ning makes money by putting ads on the social nets in its network. It currently uses Google and other suppliers, but is said to be working on its own advertising platform. The company, founded in early 2007, currently has 29.3 million registered users, using 1.3 million social networks, and says it is adding one million registered users every 15 days.

According to Bianchini, the company will use the money for possible acquisitions and other strategic options, including attracting more talent and offering its social networks more tools.

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