Worldsensing Raises €8.3 Million in Series B Financing

Operational intelligence specialist Worldsensing has raised €8.3 million in Series B funding to accelerate its growth in the Industrial IoT (IIoT) and smart cities markets.

The Financing was co-led by McRock Capital, a dedicated IIoT VC fund manager and ETF Partners, a pan-European growth equity investor focused on sustainability, with existing investor Cisco Investments also participating. As part of the financing, McRock’s Scott MacDonald and ETF’s Remy de Tonnac have joined Worldsensing’s Board of Directors.

Closure of the Series B investment follows a strong period of growth for Worldsensing. The company doubled revenues in 2016 and is aiming to achieve the same level of success in 2017, while focusing on growing its global market reach and international office network.

Commenting on the announcement Ignasi Vilajosana, CEO at Worldsensing, said: “Since 2010, when we launched our first product, we have excelled in producing end-to-end software and hardware solutions for both smart city and industrial applications.”

“We have now reached a stage where we are able to capitalise on this expertise and extend the development of IoT sensors and systems to offer integrated solutions; those which deliver real-time data insights and decision making tools and help our customers transform their operations. The growth capital raised through Series B funding will be a catalyst in helping us to further evolve our Operational Intelligence solutions, boost commercial presence internationally and enhance customer support capabilities.”

“Cities around the world have turned to Worldsensing to provide up-to-the-minute intelligence on all aspects of a city’s operations from traffic optimization, parking availability to police force utilization and security monitoring,” said Scott MacDonald, Co-founder and Managing Partner of McRock Capital. “Worldsensing is an emerging leader in one of the fastest growing segments for Internet of Things solutions.”

Remy de Tonnac, ETF Partners, added: “The rapid digitization of cities provides a significant opportunity to address the sustainability challenge of a growing world population. Worldsensing’s proven technology is not just at the forefront of integrating sensors, systems and people, but provides real time actionable intelligence giving an immediate and measurable impact on CO2 levels. What impressed us the most about Ignasi and his team is their ability to gain a deep understanding of industry verticals and then deliver a solution tailored to their customers’ needs. We are delighted to support them on the next, exciting phase of their development.”

Existing investor Cisco Investments is making a follow-on investment as part of this latest round of fundraising. “With Machine to machine connections expected to represent 46 percent of connected devices globally by 2020, Cisco has been actively seeking out opportunities to invest in leading industrial IoT start-ups around the world,” said Jon Koplin, Managing Director EMEAR, Cisco Investments. “We are pleased to fund our second investment in Worldsensing, further supporting our first venture investment in Spain, a country which we see as evolving into an ecosystem for innovative technology start-ups and entrepreneurs.”

About Worldsensing

Worldsensing (www.worldsensing.com) is a widely recognized global IoT pioneer. Founded in 2008, the Barcelona-based technology provider delivers Operational Intelligence to traditional industries and cities. With over 50 employees in Barcelona, London and Los Angeles, Worldsensing is globally active and has already conducted projects in over 50 countries across 5 continents.

The company’s mission is to redefine the way smart cities manage mobility and how traditional industries operate infrastructures and assets. With a focus on developing integrated software and hardware solutions for both smart city and industrial applications, the company’s flagship products are its integrated City Operational Intelligence Solution Mobility, Loadsensing, the Connected Infrastructure Solution and Fastprk, its Parking Management System.

Worldsensing is an end-to-end provider, which develops projects, manufactures the necessary technology and commercializes it through a global partner network. The company is experiencing fast growth and is planning to double its staff and revenue in 2017.