Andreessen Horowitz raises $1.5 billion VC fund

One of the most prominent venture capital firms in the online world has raised a huge sum of cash.

Andreessen Horowitz (or a16z, as it's sometimes called) announced today that it has raised $1.5 billion for its Fund III. The venture capital firm has now raised a total of $2.7 billion since its founding in June 2009.

Last week, the New York Times reported that Andreessen Horowitz was looking to raise $1.5 billion to continue in its venture capital endeavors. At the time, the company declined to comment.

Today was the day to lay it all out.

"a16z's Fund III is all about extending our capabilities to more disruptors and pioneers," Co-founder and General Partner Ben Horowitz said today in a statement. "We're remaking the modern venture capital firm, and entrepreneurs are responding to our unique approach."

That unique approach has attracted a host of prominent Web companies the firm has invested in, including Zynga, Facebook, Foursquare, and Lookout. Last year, Andreessen Horowitz took a victory lap after announcing the firm and its partners had sold Skype to Microsoft for $8.5 billion. Although the company doesn't say how much it has netted in all of its investments, that figure is believed to be quite high.

Andreessen Horowitz's new funding underscores the strength of the venture capital market right now. Earlier this month, venture capital database CB Insights revealed that venture capitalists spent $7.6 billion investing in companies around the world last quarter. All told, investors offered up $30.6 billion in over 3,000 deals, making it the biggest investment year in a decade.

Update 8:09 a.m. PT to include more details.