Home-grown Firm Raises 30m in Funding
SINGAPORE, 6 September 2019 – Home-grown security firm Oneberry Technologies has raised $30 million in Series A funding as it looks to grow its presence in the region and expand its range of high-tech solutions.
The financing round – the firm’s first – was led by Singapore-based private equity firm CMIA Capital Partners and Malaysia-based Bintang Capital Partners.
Oneberry Technologies was founded in 2003 and had been self-funded. It is based in Singapore with a presence in Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines.
Chief executive Ken Pereira said yesterday that global demand is strong for some of its newer solutions, such as security robots, but expanding in South-east Asia made sense as the various markets’ needs are similar to those of Singapore.
“This means the Smart City solutions that we have already delivered in Singapore can be easily replicated in those markets using a plug-and-play model,” he added.
Oneberry offers a range of automated security and surveillance solutions, including robots, smart cameras and cyber security software. It has around 300 employees.
It was among a group of local security firms that supported the Singapore Police Force when United States President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un held their historic summit here last year, deploying smart cameras at 12 different sites.
It also deployed 10 of its KenOBI security robots for surveillance and concierge duty during the Interpol World conference at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre at Marina Bay Sands in July.
CMIA founder and managing partner Lee Chong Min noted yesterday: “We are excited to embark on our partnership with Oneberry at such a pivotal time in the company’s growth.
“We strongly believe that… the Oneberry team has the right vision and capabilities to continue to deliver exceptional and innovative solution offerings to clients across all sectors.”
The funding will also allow the company to step up research and development efforts in emerging areas of growth like cyber security.
Mr Pereira said most cyber security solutions are deployed independently in office settings, but Oneberry’s expertise in physical security would enable it to develop solutions that can integrate smart devices with traditional offline surveillance. “These solutions would enable businesses to protect vulnerable IoT (Internet of Things) devices such as CCTV (closed-circuit television) cameras,” he added.
Oneberry was ranked the top company in the security automation category in the Singapore’s Fastest-Growing Companies Survey 2019 organised by The Straits Times and market research portal Statista in February.
Source: The Straits Times