• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, November 2, 2009

The Motley Fool, a popular finance portal and a multimedia publishing company, has received a $25 million investment from BIA Digital Partners and Patriot Capital II.

In 1993, brothers David and Tom Gardner launched The Motley Fool as a monthly 16-page investment newsletter. Thirty-seven people originally signed on to pay the $48 annual subscription fee. Today, the Virginia-based company publishes a network of financial industry-related news Web sites, subscription newsletter services and podcasts. It more recently launched an asset management business offering a retail mutual fund and a private fund for investors.

The company will use the funds to provide shareholder equity, growth capital and for general corporate purposes, according to Tom Gardner, co-founder and CEO of The Motley Fool. "As we prepare to pay off our initial venture capital investors, the Fool is financially stronger than ever," said Gardner.

BIA was responsible for $15 million in funding, while Patriot, which specializes in mid-market companies, provided the remaining $10 million.

Per the deal, Lloyd Sams of BIA and Thomas Holland of Patriot have been appointed as director and observer, respectively, on the company's board of directors.

"The Motley Fool has a strong, established brand and is deeply embedded in the Web due to its first mover advantages," said Sams. "This is a company that has really figured out how to harness the power of the Internet and create a community with a common purpose."

The company closed its first round of investment back in 1999 to the tune of $26.5 million from Maveron and Mayfield Fund, and later raised another $30 million in a round led by SoftBank Capital.

The Motley Fool was once part of AOL's Greenhouse project, although it is unclear whether or AOL ever held equity in the company.