German-based company 1NCE has drawn a new equity investment from Japan’s SoftBank Corp., concurrently signing an exclusive deal that allows SoftBank to distribute 1NCE’s services across 19 countries in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region.
A spokesperson from 1NCE has said that 1NCE expects to begin offering its flat-rate Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity and roaming services in APAC by early fall.
The latest funding for 1NCE came from SoftBank’s investment arm, and SoftBank’s stake in 1NCE is now equal to that of SoftBank’s mobile network operator unit, which participated in a $50 million funding round last year that also involved 1NCE co-founder and German network operator Deutsche Telekom.
Adding to its existing facility in Hong Kong, 1NCE plans to open sales offices and technical operations in Singapore and Tokyo, to expand its capabilities to 19 countries in the region: Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam.
1NCE expects that its partnership with mobile network operators around the world will enable it to deliver fast, secure, and reliable connectivity and software to more than 110 countries.
The company expects to expand its reach to over 140 countries by the end of 2022.
Explosive Growth Expected in “Underserved” APAC Region
Daichi Nozaki, Vice President and Head of Global Business Division, Enterprise Business Unit at SoftBank, said that “1NCE is the only company that can deliver true cross-border, future-proof IoT connectivity without uncertainty – a perfect extension of SoftBank Corp.’s existing IoT portfolio.”
He followed up by noting that “we’ve closely followed 1NCE’s strong U.S. launch earlier this year and expect the same explosive growth in the underserved APAC region.”
Alexander P. Sator, CEO at 1NCE, affirmed that “with multiple mobile network operators now invested in 1NCE, we have validation that we’re on the right track to become the global leader in IoT connectivity and software.”
1NCE’s expansion into Asia is especially significant, and has much potential for growth given the large market opportunity in Asia.
Matt Hatton, Founding Partner at Transforma Insights, observed that “Asia is by far the biggest market for cellular-connected IoT. According to the Transforma Insights TAM Forecast database, collectively the 19 countries covered by the cooperation accounted for 57 percent of cellular IoT annual shipments in 2021 and will represent more than half of the world’s cellular IoT connections for at least the next decade.”
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