iWire, one of the emerging leaders in the Internet of Things, has just raised $34 million in Series A funding, led by Noor Capital and supported by Bpifrance, to accelerate its development and enter new markets. iWire is a long-standing partner of Sigfox, the 0G network pioneer and the world’s leading IoT service provider. In this fundraising, iWire has notably received support from the French public investment bank (Bpifrance) with a Buyer Credit of $25 million dedicated for the development of Sigfox networks over 12 new countries in Asia, Middle East and Africa. In addition, iWire intends to accelerate the development of its subsidiary “iWire Technologies”, specializing in the production of connected devices which will be distributed on all five continents, with a particular focus on European and US markets.
iWire announces a Series A $34 million funding round, led by Noor Capital. The company will expand, over the coming years, its geographic presence across 12 countries, by building the digital communication infrastructure to power massive IoT. iWire has so far raised more than $47 million, over the past three years. Bpifrance, the French sovereign wealth fund and a leading Export Credit Agency in Europe (Bpifrance Assurance Export acting on behalf of the French State), participated with Noor Capital in this funding round by granting a long-term equipment purchase option to iWire, through a Buyer Credit agreement.
Launched in April 2018, iWire builds country-wide communications networks to power massive IoT solutions, using Sigfox technology, 0G network pioneer and leading IoT service provider, since 2010. The IoT network allows large scale businesses such as utility companies, smart cities, smart facilities and logistics service providers to deploy massive IoT solutions in a fast, cost-effective and highly scalable way.
The demand for dedicated IoT networks is growing world-wide and considering billions of connected devices, the timing of the network deployment, is highly significant. iWire has already deployed the Sigfox network in the UAE in 2019. With these new funds, iWire wishes to extend its network coverage over new markets such as India, as well as Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Turkey and Tunisia. Starting next year, iWire will be expanding its network to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka and a few more countries in the Middle East, Africa are on the roadmap.
In addition to its network expansion and IoT service offerings, iWire is developing IoT devices under its own brand “iWire Technologies”. The company has great ambitions in this new business, as the market for connected devices is experiencing exponential growth. Forecasts show that Global IoT market estimated today to $200 billion is expected to reach $1.2 trillion by 2025. The number of connected devices estimated today at 35 billion may reach 75 billion over the next three to five years.
iWire is aiming to offer a wide range of high-quality connected products such as utility meters, gas sensors, health watch, smart ID, smoke detectors, container trackers and streetlighting solutions. To expand its activity, iWire has targeted high-volume industries that use these connected products the most such as: Utilities, Smart Cities, Smart Facilities, Digital Health and Smart Logistics. The strategy is to develop IoT products and sell them through distribution channels on a global scale. Having one of the largest communication networks, designed for massive IoT across multiple geographies, is highly synergistic.
To achieve this mission iWire seems to be well suited, as its knowledge of deploying the IoT networks has enabled it to understand the various challenges faced by the industry and specially to focus on the opportunities not only in emerging markets, but also in Europe and in the US, over the years to come.
“At iWire, we offer to our customers, an alternative to legacy connectivity solutions, which enables successful digital transformation at a lower cost of ownership. Our solutions contribute to our customers’ business efficiencies as well as their satisfaction. This investment is only the beginning of our journey and a great sign that we are on the right track. We are proud to have the trust of such an investor and we will continue expanding our network and our products to transform the digital infrastructure in the region.” explained Ahmed Fasih Akhtar, the CEO of iWire.
“Companies and organizations across the world are embracing IoT and 0G to transform the way they operate. We are thrilled to have a great company like iWire amongst our incredible community of Sigfox Operators. Our unique international network already allows customers to benefit from 0G in a seamless way in 72+ countries. The new markets iWire is adding offer tremendous potential and we look forward to a very successful collaboration.” adds Jeremy Prince, the CEO of Sigfox.
iWire Group is a company focused on delivering the promise of Internet of Things. Established in 2018, with its headquarters in Dubai, UAE, the company is engaged in building communication infrastructure for deploying mass IoT solutions. iWire also designs and develops innovative IoT products and solutions that are critical for achieving digital transformation.
Noor Capital PSC is a Private Joint Stock Company headquartered in Abu Dhabi. The company is authorized and regulated by the Securities and Commodities Authority of the United Arab Emirates to conduct Financial Investment and Consultancy as well as Financial and Monetary Intermediary Business.
Sigfox is the 0G network pioneer and the world’s leading IoT (Internet of Things) communications service provider. Sigfox offers a unique combination of ultra-low cost and ultra-low power technologies supported by a global network, enabling businesses to gain visibility and track their assets worldwide. With more than 17 million connected devices and 70 million messages sent a day, Sigfox helps its customers to extract crucial data at the lowest cost and to accelerate their digital transformation in key areas such as Asset Tracking and Supply Chain.
ISO 9001 certified and surrounded by a large ecosystem of partners and IoT key players, Sigfox was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Labège, France, with offices in Boston, Dallas, Dubai, Madrid, Paris, Sao Paulo, Singapore and Tokyo.
Bpifrance finances companies – at every stage of their development – with credit, guarantees and equity. Bpifrance supports them in their innovation and international projects. Bpifrance also ensures their export activity through a wide range of products. Advice, university, networking and acceleration programmes for start-ups, SMEs and ETIs are also part of the offer to entrepreneurs. Thanks to Bpifrance and its 50 regional offices, entrepreneurs benefit from a close, single and efficient contact to help them face their challenges.
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