ECI CEO: Funds raised will fuel our growth and place us in a leadership position in 5G Integrated Transport Solutions.
Veteran Israeli communications equipment company ECI Telecom has announced that it has filed for a $230 million IPO on the London Stock Exchange, at a company valuation of $600 million, half the value for which Shmuel Shani's Swarth Group acquired it in 2007. The money will be used by the company for investment and to reduce debt. The IPO, set to go ahead in the coming few months, will be led by Barclays and UBS.
The Petah Tikva based company provides comprehensive networking and data transport products and solutions to service providers, utilities and governments, and defense and security customers. ECI says it has been the fastest growing provider among its key European and US based peers since the beginning of 2017.
ECI president and CEO Darryl Edwards said, "I'm delighted for ECI to be taking this important next step in its journey. It's a real positive testament to the strategic decisions and investments that we have made in new products and technologies that will now fuel our growth and place us in a leadership position in 5G Integrated Transport Solutions."
ECI has been providing comprehensive networking and data transport products and solutions since 1961 and is one of only a few providers globally offering both optical and packet networking products and solutions, with a diverse and long-standing global customer base. In recent years, the company has shifted its strategy to focus solely on optical and transport solutions and has since introduced a full new set of advanced products and solutions, which now represent the majority of its sales. 2017 revenue grew 13% over 2016 and revenue in the first half of 2018 grew 24% over the corresponding period of 2017.
ECI traded on Nasdaq but was delisted in 2007 after being taken over by the Swarth Group.