M Ventures www.m-ventures.com, the strategic corporate venture capital fund of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany and CLEARink Displays http://www.clearinkdisplays.com, the leader in next generation ePaper, announced that M Ventures has made an investment in CLEARink’s C Round.
CLEARink started its C Round of investment mid 2017 with a lead investment and co-investments by China based strategic investors involved in the electronic display industry. Following this, additional investments were received from strategic investors in the U.S. and Taiwan. This latest investment from M Ventures marks the end of the C Round. The C Round, which was oversubscribed, paves the way for the company to focus on bringing its first products to market.
CLEARink has developed ePaper 2.0, the world’s first reflective display that will be color and video/internet capable. The company targets the education and wearable markets, where traditional display technologies aren’t a fit. The company has been seeing great traction in the education market, as concerns are growing about the lack of outdoor readability with traditional displays, forcing children to be educated in daylight deprived classrooms, and the detrimental impact of long-term exposure to backlights.
CLEARink closed its 1st round in 2012 and a 2nd round in 2015. This 3rd round of financing was specifically targeted at strategic investors. The proceeds from this round are intended to take the company through the trial-manufacturing phase and to mass production. CLEARink is currently running manufacturing trials in Shenzhen, China.
“We are delighted that M Ventures has decided to join our group of distinguished investors. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany had already been investing in our joint development since 2012 with a further development agreement signed in 2017[1], but the fact that they now took an equity stake in our company through their venture fund is a further endorsement of our success potential” said Frank Christiaens, CEO & Chairman, CLEARink Displays.
Owen Lozman, Vice President, M Ventures, added, “We have found both the CLEARink team and the technology to be exceptional. Now that the technology nears maturity and first end products are expected to come to market in 2019, we are excited to announce this investment as part of our growing Performance Materials portfolio and to ensure that we continue to contribute to the success of this disruptive display technology.”
About M Ventures
M Ventures is the strategic, corporate venture capital arm of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany. Its mandate is to invest in innovative technologies and products with the potential to significantly impact Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany’s core business areas. M Ventures invests globally in transformational ideas driven by great entrepreneurs. The company takes an active role in its portfolio companies and teams up with entrepreneurs and co-investors to translate innovation towards commercial success. For more information, visit www.m-ventures.com.
About CLEARink Displays, Inc.
CLEARink is a leader in reflective display technology for eSchoolbooks, Wearables, IoT, electronic shelf labels (ESLs), outdoor signage, and automotive applications. CLEARink’s patent protected TIR technology is a superior alternative to existing reflective displays, providing unparalleled video and color representation, using a fraction of the energy consumed by LCD, with a highly competitive cost structure. Founded in 2012, the company has raised over US$20 million in financing from strategic investors in the display industry and is headquartered in Fremont, California. For more information, visit http://www.clearinkdisplays.com.
About Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany
Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, is a leading science and technology company in healthcare, life science and performance materials. Around 50,000 employees work to further develop technologies that improve and enhance life – from biopharmaceutical therapies to treat cancer or multiple sclerosis, cutting-edge systems for scientific research and production, to liquid crystals for smartphones and LCD televisions. In 2016, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, generated sales of € 15.0 billion in 66 countries.
Founded in 1668, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, is the world’s oldest pharmaceutical and chemical company. The founding family remains the majority owner of the publicly listed corporate group. Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, holds the global rights to the “Merck” name and brand. The only exceptions are the United States and Canada, where the company operates as EMD Serono, MilliporeSigma and EMD Performance Materials. For more info, visit https://www.merckgroup.com.
[1] https://www.merckgroup.com/en/news/clearink-displays-sign-development-10-01-2017.html
