i-Optics secures financing for commercial roll-out
2012-05-03
Eye diagnostics innovator i-Optics announced today the successful closing of its D financing round with an investment of 6.7 million euro. This investment allows the company to continue the global commercial roll-out of the EasyScan and launch its second product, the Cassini cornea topographer, later this year.
The current investors in i-Optics, the Netherlands based VC fund Aescap Venture and family investment fund De Hoge Dennen, together with a group of family funds and informal investors have provided the funding of 6.7 million Euro needed to continue the commercial roll-out of the EasyScan in Europe, USA and key emerging markets. The Supervisory Board of i-Optics will continue in its current composition and will continue to consist of Patrick Krol (Chairman), general partner of Aescap Venture, Pieter van der Meijden, member of the management team of De Hoge Dennen, and Stephane Sallmard who as CEO listed in 2006 the retinal imaging company OPTOS at the London Stock Exchange.
Patrick Krol, who represents Aescap Venture, comments on the financing, which is the fourth round of Aescap in i-Optics: “We continue to be very excited about the potential of the company, the team and the products. The market reaction to the launch of the EasyScan has been very positive, so we are confident the global roll-out of this product will be a success.”
Jeroen Cammeraat, CEO of i-Optics, comments on this important milestone: “The EasyScan is a highly innovative retinal imaging system that is designed for screening and early diagnosis of Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) and other eye diseases such as AMD and Glaucoma. Since the launch of the EasyScan in the fourth quarter of 2011 we have received over 25 orders and customer reviews have been more than positive. Over the last year, we have expanded our sales and marketing organization and we currently have distribution partners in place in most of our key markets. With the successful closing of this funding round, we can accelerate the commercial roll-out of the EasyScan and prepare for the launch of our second product, the Cassini cornea topographer.”
The EasyScan offers a number of benefits over traditional fundus cameras: it is fast, easy-to-use and accessible. And, being a confirmed zero-dilation camera, it is the most patient friendly system on the market. Weighing less than 7kg and with a footprint smaller than a binder, EasyScan is extremely portable – which means imaging can be brought closer to the patient. The standard USB connection enables seamless data sharing for archiving or telemedicine purposes.
Altogether, this is also good news for patients: Early diagnosis and timely treatment of eye desease are crucial to preventing blindness. With aging populations and growing obesity, countries everywhere face a rapid increase in diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, glaucoma, and other retinal diseases. Unfortunately, the traditional fundus cameras used to diagnose these conditions are often expensive, bulky, difficult to operate and require pupil dilation. EasyScan has been designed from the ground up to solve all these problems.
About i-Optics
i-Optics pioneers smart and superior eye diagnosis solutions that are affordable, fast and easy to use by care providers worldwide to serve their patients best. Our innovations include EasyScan, Cassini1 and EyePrevent. EasyScan is a zero-dilation breakthrough retinal imaging system that uses Scanning Laser Ophthalmoscope technology for the diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, and glaucoma. Cassini is a first-of-its-kind corneal topographer based on Color LED Topography. It supports superior contact lens fitting, earlier detection of Keratoconus, and could help improve the outcomes of corneal transplants and refractive surgery. EyePrevent is a retinal-disease screening service for diabetic and other patients.
WE SEE THINGS DIFFERENTLY.
1. Cassini is currently available for investigation purpose only
www.i-optics.com
For more information please contact Roxane Van ’t Hooft
T: +31 70 399 31 12
E: r.vanthooft@i-optics.com
i-Optics secures financing for commercial roll-out 0.00 kb (en)