TMCnet News
Devialet Raises EUR100 Million and Chooses a Consortium of Leading International Investors to Fuel Growth and InnovationHONG KONG, Nov. 29, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Devialet, the world's most critically acclaimed start-up in sound technology for the excellence of its innovations, with 107 patents and 61 international awards, raised €100 million in capital through a co-investment led by Ginko Ventures with participation from international industrial and financial investors including Foxconn, Groupe Renault, Sharp Corporation, Playground Global, Naver, Roc Nation, Future French Champions, CM-CIC Investissement and Bpifrance. Founded in 2007 and headquartered in Paris, Devialet is growing rapidly, doubling its turnover every year and currently has a workforce of 230 employees. Devialet will use the additional financing resulting from this fundraising in four key areas of development: Rolling-out Devialet's technologies across automotive, television and Internet of Things (IoT) industries representing a global potential of several billions of devices per year through strategic and industrial partnerships and agreements. Continued expansion of its distribution networks around two retail concepts:
Investing further in R&D to accelerate innovation and reinforce its patent portfolio and therefore consolidating its technological leadership in the field of sound. Enabling a greater number of people to discover the emotional power of the Devialet sound with Phantom, engaging further with music and high tech communities across five continents. "This fundraising marks a new stage in our incredible development towards being a global tech company and leader in our industry," says Quentin Sannié, co-founder and CEO of Devialet. "Our ambition is to be the pioneering role model of technology at the service of emotion throughout the world. We are extremely happy and proud to welcome the new investors, most of whom are entrepreneurs. Beyond enabling us to accelerate our development though additional funds, they will support our geographical influence, especially in Asia and the US. We have already initiated very promising common projects. I would like to warmly thank our outstanding team, our shareholders, our suppliers and industrial partners for their trust over the last 10 years". Amongst Devialet's new shareholders are: Ginko, the European investment fund, lead investor, run by Jean-François Baril, former VP of Nokia Foxconn, the global leader in consumer electronics manufacturing and provider of innovative technology services, founded by Terry Gou, and its subsidiary Foxconn Interconnect Technology Groupe Renault, the leading French automotive brand in the world, member of the Renault-Nissan alliance, run by Carlos Ghosn and the fourth biggest car maker in the world with more than 8 million vehicles per year Sharp Corporation, a worldwide developer of innovative products and core technologies that play a key role in shaping the future of electronics and solutions for smart homes and offices Playground Global, the American venture fund founded in Palo Alto by Andy Rubin, the celebrated creator of Android who is imagining the future of IoT and who speaking about his involvement in Devialet's fundraising, declared "I am a huge fan of Devialet. I love the technology and the team. I believe Devialet is the most disruptive company in the audio business. It is my dream to work with Quentin and his team to change the way people appreciate media of all types. I am very proud and happy to take part in this financing". Korelya Capital, the investment fund created by Fleur Pellerin (France's former Secretary of State for Digital affairs) in partnership with Naver and its subsidiary Line, the Korean Internet and social network leader in Asia, to finance French and European Tech champions Roc Nation, the American based full-service entertainment company, founded by Shawn "Jay-Z" Carter Future French Champions, an investment fund co-founded by the Qatar Investment Authority, the sovereign wealth fund of Qatar, and CDC International Capital, to support French companies with great potential in their international development CM-CIC Investissement, the equity financing arm of the Crédit Mutuel CIC group Bpifrance, the Public Investment Bank, whose mission is to finance hyper-growth companies leading their industry and strongly contributing to the French innovation ecosystem Fleur Pellerin and Jean-François Baril will join Devialet's Board of Directors as Directors. "Devialet is a real gem that has been able to innovate and put sound at the heart of a technological revolution," said Fleur Pellerin. "This first investment of Korelya Capital marks its ambition to serve French and European Tech entrepreneurs to help them in their international development, especially in Asia" "From fundamental technology innovations, to unmatched audio performance and experience, Devialet is disrupting the electronic market demonstrating that we can sell emotion through acoustic innovations as a new must have function, to ultimately be integrated in all electronic devices. Ginko Ventures, is very proud to contribute accelerating the growth of this amazing company", added Jean-Francois Baril. Caroline Giral (CM-CIC Investissement) and Marc Auberger (FFC) will join Devialet's Board of Directors as Board Observers. The financial operation was led by Bryan, Garnier&Co.
Founded in 2007 and based in Paris, Devialet is the premier start-up in the world for the excellence of its inventions in the sound field, with 107 patents and 61 international awards. Devialet is a rapidly expanding company with, today, 230 employees. It doubles its turnover every year. Among its historical investors it has Bernard Arnault, Jean-Antoine Granjon, Xavier Niel and Marc Simoncini. Hailed by all the experts and awarded by the most demanding of international magazines, the start-up is present in the very exclusive stores that are Colette, Harrods, and Kadewe in Berlin. The revolutionary connected speaker Phantom has been commercialised in Apple Store since December 2015. With its place as leader only 5 years after the launch of the first D-Premier speaker, the brand has been able to keep true to its initial values, dear to the heart of its 3 founders, the engineer Pierre-Emmanuel Calmel, the visionary entrepreneur Quentin Sannié and the super designer Emmanuel Nardin. The Enlightenment Philosophy, that is to say the scientific progress that makes man better, is at the heart of this story. Success has indeed been possible thanks to the succession of radical inventions in sound engineering, of which the ADH intelligence - the revolutionary technology that transformed the amplification of sound by enabling the hybrid mix of digital and analogue electronics. 70 acoustician engineers, mechanics, electricians, and IT engineers in signal processing, the best in their field of specialisation, work every day at Devialet's to invent the sound technologies of the future. About Ginko Ventures Founded in 2015, Ginko Ventures is a venture capital Firm targeting technologies, devices and solutions that will improve the way people work, play and live. We primarily focus on investments in European and Israeli companies whose technologies have the potential to rapidly access global markets. Together with our limited partner Foxconn, we are also keen on creating tangible industrial leverage for our portfolio companies. Our mission is to enable sustainable partnership between industry leaders and amazing entrepreneurs for disruptive innovations and superior value creation. For more information visit: www.ginkopartners.com About Foxconn Established in 1974, Foxconn Technology Group ("Foxconn"), under the leadership of Founder and CEO Terry Gou, offers the most competitive production manufacturing technology in the world. A recognized global industry leader, Foxconn created the 3C OEM service business model, eCMMS, incorporating vertical integration of mechanical, optical and electronic components. Foxconn offers many of the world's leading companies a one-stop integrated manufacturing solution. Foxconn has in recent years expanded into technology services, providing customers the most comprehensive solutions for their technology and manufacturing needs. In addition to maximizing value creation for customers, Foxconn is also dedicated to enhancing the concept of environmental protection in the manufacturing process. In addition to being a trusted partner for its customers, Foxconn is working to be a best-practices model for global enterprises. Foxconn is committed to working with its partners to build an Internet of Things ecosystem to enable smart lives. About Groupe Renault Groupe Renault has been making cars since 1898. Today it is an international multi-brand group, selling more than 2.8 million vehicles in 125 countries in 2015, with 36 manufacturing sites, 12,000 points of sales and employing more than 120,000 people. To meet the major technological challenges of the future and continue its strategy of profitable growth, the Group is harnessing its international development and the complementary fit of its three brands, Renault, Dacia and Renault Samsung Motors, together with electric vehicles and the unique Alliance with Nissan. With a new team in Formula 1 and a strong commitment in Formula E, Renault sees motorsport as a vector of innovation, image and awareness. About Sharp Sharp is a Japanese multinational corporation that designs and manufactures electronic products, headquartered in Sakai-ku, Sakai. Since 2016 it has been an integral part of Taiwan-based Foxconn Group. Sharp employs more than 50,000 people worldwide. The company was founded in September 1912 in Tokyo and takes its name from one of its founder's first inventions, the Ever-Sharp mechanical pencil, which was invented by Tokuji Hayakawa in 1915. As of 2013, Sharp Corporation is the tenth-largest, by market share, television manufacturer in the world. In Japan it has been a long-time leader. Sharp has at times also been the most popular mobile phone brand in the Japanese market, but is currently third biggest. About Playground Playground Global is a venture fund and hardware studio that partners with entrepreneurs building the future of hardware and intelligent software to instrument, connect, and augment the world. The firm was founded by Andy Rubin, Bruce Leak, Matt Hershenson, and Peter Barrett, all of whom have been successful founders and operators at foundational tech companies such as Android, Apple, Danger, General Magic, Microsoft, and WebTV. In addition to the founders, the team is comprised of domain experts within electrical engineering, industrial design, mechanical engineering, manufacturing, software architecture, and supply chain. The team is experienced and passionate about building and shipping breakthrough products that become the basis for category defining companies. About Naver Founded in 1999, Naver is the no. 1 South Korean web firm, boosted primarily by its search website, which is the most popular in South Korea. The firm has developed online advertising and content by adopting a very persistent and constant R&D policy, which has enabled Naver to bring very popular product innovations to market such as Pay-Per-Click (PPC) Advertising in 2005 based on numbers of clicks by Internet users. Naver is one of the largest listed companies in the country with nearly 6 000 employees, and market capitalization of $27 billion. About Korelya Capital Created by Fleur Pellerin (France's former Secretary of State for Digital affairs), Korelya Capital is the primary manager of a venture capital fund, K-Fund 1, which will invest €100 million in the high-tech industry in France and other European countries. This amount was provided by Naver and its subsidiary Line, which each contributed €50 million. About Roc Nation Roc Nation is an american based full-service entertainment company, inclusive of artist, songwriter, producer and engineer management, music publishing, touring & merchandising, film & television, new business ventures and a music label, founded by Shawn "JAY Z" Carter. About Future French Champions Future French Champions is a partnership initiated in 2014 between Qatar Investment Authority and CDC International Capital. Its shareholders are: Qatar Investment Authority: QIA is the State of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund with responsibility for investing the State's reserves at international level to preserve the country's wealth for future generations. QIA is a partner of choice for financial investors and other stakeholders CDC International Capital: CDC International Capital (CDC IC) is the Caisse des Dépôts subsidiary dedicated to investments through partnership with sovereign funds and major international institutional investors. CDC International Capital has developed a network of institutional partners in the Middle East, Russia, Asia and North America and operates through a variety of investment structures. About CM-CIC Investissement Venture capital, growth capital, buyout capital, M&A advisory: CM-CIC Investissement meets the needs of businesses in all areas of equity financing. Together with our professionalism, the success of our approach stems from our strong focus on people, our close ties with business leaders and the long-term support we provide to investee companies. CM-CIC Investissement invests its own capital (almost €2.4 billion) and its investment portfolio consists of around 450 companies. www.cmcic-investissement.com About Bpifrance Bpifrance's equity investments are managed by Bpifrance investissement. Bpifrance, a subsidiary of the Caisse des Dépôts et de l'État, a trusted partner for entrepreneurs, supports companies from start-up to their listing on the stock market, through credit, guarantees and equity. Bpifrance also provides support services and enhanced support for innovation, external growth and export in partnership with Business France and Coface. Bpifrance offers companies a funding continuum for each key stage of their development together with services adapted to different regional needs. Through its 42 regional offices (90% of decisions are taken in region), Bpifrance represents a true financially competitive service for entrepreneurs. Bpifrance acts in support of public policies implemented by the State and the Regional authorities to meet three objectives:
With Bpifrance, companies have a powerful, close and efficient partner to meet all their needs for funding, innovation and investment. For more information go to: www.bpifrance.fr - Follow us on Twitter: @Bpifrance About Bryan, Garnier & Co (www.bryangarnier.com) Bryan, Garnier & Co is a European, full service growth-focused independent investment banking partnership founded in 1996. The firm provides equity research, sales and trading, private and public capital raising as well as M&A services to growth companies and their investors. It focuses on key growth sectors of the economy including Technology, Media, Telecoms, Healthcare, Smart Industries, Specialty Retail and Business Services. Bryan, Garnier & Co Ltd is a fully registered broker dealer authorized by the FCA in Europe and the FINRA in the U.S. Bryan, Garnier & Co is headquartered in London, with additional offices in Paris, Munich, Geneva and New York. The firm is a member of the London Stock Exchange and Euronext. Media Contacts: Peter Cheung Asia Ltd Citigate Dewe Rogerson 
|