Danish-German technology company Hymite A/S, an innovative supplier of advanced wafer level packaging products for electronics, micromechanical and optoelectronics components, today announced closure of its Series Preferred B financing round totaling € 9.0 million (DKK 70 million) by a European consortium of VCs consisting of TVM Capital (Germany), InnovationsKapital (Sweden), Dansk Kapitalanlæg, Vaekstfonden, and IVS (all Denmark).
With the new investment Hymite is strengthening its sales organization, increasing its customer base and building up its manufacturing infrastructure using external foundries.
Hymite's innovative wafer level packaging products are advanced low-cost solutions that enable new and better ways to package ultra-compact, high-brightness Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs), MEMS components and RF devices for mobile phones such as filters or RF integrated circuits. With its current product portfolio Hymite is addressing high-growth volume markets including handheld devices, consumer electronics, and automotive products.
"High-brightness LEDs have become one of our sweet spots " for LEDs to penetrate into markets where today traditional evanescent light bulbs dominate, output power per watt needs to increase to 70 to 80 lumens/watt. We help to achieve that by providing a package that efficiently removes the heat from the chip so it can operate at higher currents and lower junction temperatures, thus increasing output and extending lifetime, said Jochen Kuhmann, CTO and founder. "Our packaging technology platform is based on standard manufacturing processes. With this platform we can significantly enhance performance of the packaged components while maintaining very competitive prices for our products.
"With key customer wins in both high-brightness LED and MEMS, our wafer level packaging solutions have proven their potential in high volume, high growth markets, said Claus Joergen Nielsen, chief executive officer, Hymite A/S. "New requirements from the markets such as smaller footprint and higher performance are bringing business in our direction. Wafer level packaging is a clear industry trend and we are supporting this with a low-cost, reliable solution that adds value to the customers.
"Miniaturization and integration possibilities using silicon wafer level packaging goes far beyond the limits set by traditional packaging technologies," said Hans-Guenther Schreck, general partner with TVM Capital. "We are convinced that silicon-based wafer level packaging is the solution for MEMS, electronics and optoelectronics products, since simplicity, size reduction and integration equals cost reduction.
"We are extremely pleased with Hymite's progress over the past two years, said Jimmy Fussing Nielsen, partner with Vækstfonden. "Today, Hymite stands out as one of the most compelling packaging solutions in the global marketplace. Following a period of design-ins with key customers, the current investment will help Hymite position itself as a global market leader in innovative and performance-enhancing packaging solutions.
About Hymite
Hymite is a technology leader of silicon-based packaging for MEMS, optical communications and other electronics industries. The products and technologies Hymite offers significantly reduce cost/performance ratio for packaging of components and systems through innovative designs, component integration and wafer-level assembly and testing. Further information can be obtained from the company's website at www.hymite.com.
About the investors:
TVM Capital, founded in 1983 under the name Techno Venture Management, is one of the first venture capital firms formed in Germany, and an early entrant into the US market in 1986. Since inception TVM Capital has raised over € 1.3 billion in six fund generations and has established itself as a leading technology investment group in Europe and the United States. TVM Capital funds have made investments in more than 230 information technology and life science companies where innovation, effective management and sound financial backing have enormous impact on company growth. The TVM Capital in-depth knowledge of the European and US environment helps companies create businesses that enjoy access to science, management talent, distribution channels and capital on both sides of the Atlantic. More than 40 companies went public at European or US stock exchanges. Today, TVM is actively invested in over 70 companies. www.tvm-capital.com.
InnovationsKapital is a leading Nordic early stage venture capital firm investing in innovative growth companies in Information and Communications Technologies and Healthcare & Life Sciences. InnovationsKapital has invested in more than 50 companies across the Nordic area since it was founded in 1994 " Altitun, Arexis, BioInvent, Carmen Systems, Formex, Spotfire and Kreatel are examples of companies that InnovationsKapital has backed. The capital (Euro 200 million) is managed in three funds and is provided by highly reputable Swedish and international institutional investors.
For more information, please visit: www.innkap.se.
Dansk Kapitalanlæg is a well-established Danish investment company, investing in and developing small and medium sized Danish companies across a range of industries. Since 1984 Dansk Kapitalanlæg has invested more than DKK 3bn in 175 companies. With a current capital base of about DKK 1.5bn (EUR 200m) and holding more than 35 companies in our portfolio we are among the largest and most active investors in our segment. www.dankap.dk
Vaekstfonden is one of the largest Danish VC players with a capital base of € 300 million. Vaekstfonden is a state backed investment company. Vaekstfonden provides funding to fast-growing Danish companies and acts as a fund-of-funds investor in the private equity sector in the Nordic region. Vaekstfonden invests in early stage ventures mainly focusing on the Life Science and Technology areas, and provides growth capital financing to a broad range of industries. It is part of Vaekstsfonden's strategic objectives to work actively to facilitate access to international venture capital and drive the development of an internationally competitive private equity environment in Denmark. www.vaekstfonden.dk
IVS A/S is a Danish venture company founded in 1999 by a team of experienced professional entrepreneurs focused on supporting growth companies in the Scandinavian and European markets to realize their full potential. IVS invests in technology-enabled innovations within the IT and telecommunication industries, with an emphasis on software and infrastructure. Investments are made in businesses founded on unique and proven innovations, either in technology or in the implementation of new business models. www.ivs.dk