Foursquare CEO steps down; company raises $45 million in funding

(Reuters) - Foursquare's chief executive, Dennis Crowley, is stepping down and will be succeeded by Jeff Glueck, the company's current chief operating officer.

Foursquare, which makes apps that helps users find restaurants and stores and "check" into them, also raised $45 million in funding, Glueck said in a blog post on Medium.

This series E funding round was led by Union Square Ventures with participation from Morgan Stanley (MS.N), as well as previous investors including DFJ Growth, Andreessen Horowitz and Spark Capital.

The company expects this latest funding will aid its plans to fill 30 new positions in sales, engineering and other functions, according to Glueck's blog post.

Foursquare planned a funding round in December, between $20 million and $40 million with one new investor, valuing the company at $250 million.

Crowley, who is now stepping down as the chief executive of the company, will become executive chairman.

The company also named Steven Rosenblatt, chief revenue officer, as the president and promoted Kinjil Mathur to chief marketing officer and Jonathan Crowley to vice president, product.

Foursquare has been the subject of takeover speculation, with Yahoo Inc (YHOO.O) being reported more than once as a potential buyer.

The company raised $35 million in a fundraising round in 2013, valuing the company at $650 million.

(Reporting by Rishika Sadam in Bengaluru; Editing by Cynthia Osterman)