Thinxtra, an Australia-based internet-of-things (IoT) technology supplier backed by quartz crystal manufacturer Rakon, is in talks with investors including undisclosed industrial entities over a A$20m ($15.3m) round, Australian Financial Review reported yesterday.
Thinxtra is rolling out the low-powered wide area IoT network developed by France-based Sigfox in Australia and New Zealand, providing software that enables connected devices to communicate with each other without consuming substantial power or costing considerable money.
In roughly two years of operation Thinxtra has secured about 1.3 million connections to the Sigfox network and has reached 70% coverage in Australia and 83% in New Zealand.
The company aims to reach 95% coverage in both countries by the end of 2017, and has opened an office in Hong Kong as it looks to expand into Asia.
Thinxtra closed a A$11m series A round in September 2016 that featured Rakon along with undisclosed backers the company described as “major players within the IoT space”.
The series B is expected to close by the end of April 2017 and in addition to unnamed industrial players, Thinxtra is speaking to venture capitalists, family offices and existing backers.