AAA Axxana looks to Asia with Sumitomo

Axxana looks to Asia with Sumitomo

Presidio Ventures, the US-based corporate venturing division of Japan-based general trading corporation Sumitomo, invested an undisclosed amount in Israel-based data recovery software firm Axxana on Wednesday.

Prior to Presidio’s funding, Axxana had raised $14m in financing over two rounds. Axxana’s series A raised $5m from venture capital (VC) investor Gemini Israel Funds, in 2007, and was followed by a $9m series B round in November 2009 in which Gemini was joined by VC fund Carmel Ventures and angel investor Moshe Yanai.

Sumitomo’s interest seems to have been piqued by a series of recent natural disasters in Japan including the earthquake and tsunami experienced by the country this year. Axxana’s Phoenix System enables businesses to protect and later recover 100% of their data over any distance, and for a comparatively low cost.

Tsuyoshi Konda, general manager of Sumitomo’s principal investment department, said: "Generally speaking, as Japan is situated in an area of frequent natural disasters, customers there are particularly understanding of the need for reliable and cost-effective disaster recovery solutions. Especially following the latest tragic disasters in Japan, we believe Axxana’s message of 100% data recovery over unlimited distance and at reasonable cost will prove to be very attractive to Japanese customers."

Toshihiko Kuskabe , chief executive officer of Presidio Ventures, added: "The clever solution that Axxana has developed demonstrates perfectly a key characteristic we seek when assessing the potential of a new technology investment: creative innovation based upon a strong understanding of the customer’s needs. With this balance in place, Axxana is able to offer some of the most substantial innovations in disaster recovery technology we’ve seen in years."

Axxana will use the capital to expand its service into new regions, particularly in Asia where Sumitomo is based.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *