CREO Ltd rises $13 million for expansion of international marketing and service infrastructure

Citation

(2000), "CREO Ltd rises $13 million for expansion of international marketing and service infrastructure", Circuit World, Vol. 26 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/cw.2000.21726dab.014

CREO Ltd rises $13 million for expansion of international marketing and service infrastructure

CREO Ltd rises $13 million for expansion of international marketing and service infrastructure

Keyword CREO

Creo Ltd (founded by the Canadian Creo Products, Inc.) has completed a private placement of $13 million, which has raised the company's value to $52 million.

Vertex venture capital fund, with a $4 million investment led the investment round. The remaining funds were raised from the Creo Products Inc., The Challenge Fund, Nomura Bank and Nomura/Jafco.

Creo Ltd. has recently completed the Beta phase of its innovative technology, which provides a complete solution to direct imaging of printed circuit boards. Creo's systems allow the manufacturing of highly advanced and dense circuits with 1-mil conductors, at remarkable quality, unprecedented resolution and supreme yields. Printed circuit manufacturing companies worldwide, need this technology to comply with the demand for high-density circuits stemming from a global trend towards miniaturization of electronic devises in general, and in particular hand-held devices like: portable computers, palm pilots, cellular phone and devises for wireless Internet access.

Dr Gidon Shichman, vice-president of Vertex stated "The investment made by Vertex in Creo Ltd. is part of Vertex strategy of investments in key technologies for Internet economy. The mass growth in wireless Internet access devises will be translated to an increase in need for connection and placement of components on multi-layered substrates with a conductor density higher than available today. Creo's technology is the only one in the world today that can answer the requirements for the conductor density prescribed by these devises."

Eviataer Halevi, CEO of Creo Ltd. added "The capital invested in Creo will allow us the continued development of our Next Generation products and the expansion of the International Marketing and Support infrastructure". Halevi believes that Creo will benefit from the existing networks of Vertex, Jaffco. and Nomura Bank in the Far-East and Japan, in which more than half of the worldwide printed circuit board manufacturing centers, and where the demand for high-density boards is the highest. "In addition", said Halevi, "the form of relations between Vertex, Jaffco and Nomura Bank promises a strong cooperation within the investors group to strengthen Creo's economic foundation and independence as the company advances in the incorporation of its technologies at world-leading printed circuit fabrication facilities".