One of the emerging leaders in the Internet of Things (IoT), iWire has raised a Series A $34-million funding round led by Noor Capital. The company will expand its geographic presence across 12 countries by building the digital communication infrastructure to power massive IoT solutions. Over the past three years, iWire has raised more than $47 million. 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 countrywide 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.
“At iWire, we offer our customers an alternative to legacy connectivity solutions, which enables successful digital transformation at a lower cost of ownership,” explains Ahmed Fasih Akhtar, CEO of iWire. “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.”
Growing demand
The demand for dedicated IoT networks is growing worldwide. Considering billions of connected devices, the timing of the network deployment is highly significant. The company 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 and Africa are on the road map.
“Companies and organisations across the world are embracing IoT and 0G to transform the way they operate,” says Jeremy Prince, CEO of Sigfox. “We are thrilled to have a great company like iWire among our incredible community of Sigfox operators. Our unique international network already allows customers to benefit from 0G in a seamless way in 72 plus countries. The new markets iWire is adding offer tremendous potential and we look forward to a very successful collaboration.”
IoT devices under iWire Technologies
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 at $200 billion is expected to reach $1.2 trillion by 2025. The number of connected devices estimated at 35 billion may reach 75 billion over the next three to five years.
The company aims 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 street-lighting 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 in the years to come.
For more information, visit iWiregroup.com
