Connexin secures £80m investment from Whitehelm Capital to take UK Smart Cities to the next level

Hull-based Smart City company raises significant capital to build smart programmable communities of the future.

Infrastructure manager Whitehelm Capital commits to the growth of digital infrastructure in the UK.

UK citizens set to benefit from societal impacts – improved quality of life, reduction in pollution and decrease in water loss.

Smart City operator Connexin today announced it has raised an initial commitment of up to £80 million in funding to further strengthen its position as a leader in the smart infrastructure and Internet of Things (IoT) sector. The new investment will support the expansion of the business to meet the expected growth in demand for smart networks in UK cities and their connecting infrastructures, enabling better connectivity as well as smarter, more efficient services to communities.

The large injection of capital has been provided by Whitehelm Capital (Whitehelm), one of the world’s largest independent infrastructure managers.

Investment to accelerate Connexin business strategy

Connexin has already achieved many ground-breaking achievements in a short time frame. In 2019, Connexin delivered the UK’s first purpose-built Smart City Operating System for Hull City Council and this year helped Amey implement Connexin’s CityOS platform to improve highway maintenance services across Sheffield. The added investment from Whitehelm will enable Connexin to accelerate its business strategy and maintain resilience whilst responding to the market demand for smarter infrastructure and technology.

Investing in Digital Transformation for cities and communities

Furqan Alamgir, Co-Founder & CEO of Connexin said:

“Now more than ever, we have been taught by the pandemic the true value of technology and the societal benefits that it has for citizens. At Connexin, we’re building sustainable, programmable infrastructure for today and tomorrow. This financing further validates the digital transformation we have delivered within cities, communities, and the utility sector through our leadership and innovation in the smart infrastructure and IoT space.

We are extremely excited to be working with the Whitehelm team and look forward to continuing our commitment to building programmable infrastructure of the future that will address future challenges, drive economic savings, promote a better quality of life, and create environmental improvements.”

Successful track record in connectivity services

Tom Maher, Head of Business Development at Whitehelm Capital, said:

“Whitehelm is delighted to partner with Connexin to support the development of digital infrastructure in the UK. At a time when connectivity has become more important than ever, we have identified a significant need to invest in regional networks and support local communities. Connexin’s long and successful track record in providing connectivity services to these local communities, businesses, and municipalities make it a perfect partner.

Connexin and its founders Furqan Alamgir and Alex Yeung have an outstanding track record in developing digital infrastructure and we are looking forward to a successful partnership. In addition to the initial commitment of up to £80 million, Whitehelm has earmarked further capital for investment through the partnership.”

Internet of things and Digital Strategy

Connexin uses an Internet of Things foundation for its digital strategy, and its Smart City Operating System (OS), Connexin CityOS, allows communities to be fully programmable with its next-generation network. CityOS centralises information and utilises the power of data analytics to generate insights to improve wellbeing and quality of life for individuals.

Alamgir concludes:

“This investment isn’t just about Connexin. It affects every community. Everyone deserves clean air, tidier streets, safer roads. By allowing all communities to have access to our digitally connected infrastructure, it enables connected devices to 'speak' to one another which paves the way for amazing things.

By way of example, we create solutions for councils that can monitor air quality and communicate this information with people who suffer with breathing conditions to help prevent asthma attacks and reduce hospital admissions. We’ve also helped the utility sector with smart metering for leak protection for better water performance to help tackle the problem of 3.1 billion litres of water lost each day due to water leakage.

With this investment, we can replicate the success we have in building smart communities across the country. It’s how we all want to live by just being smarter.”

About Connexin

Founded in Hull in 2006, we are an innovative and disruptive technology company specialising in building and operating award-winning Smart City infrastructure to support the Internet of Things (IoT).

We have established ourselves as a market leader in the provision of end-to-end IoT Smart City solutions, such as Smart Water, Smart Parking, Smart Lighting and Smart Waste.

Hull became the first city in the UK to benefit from its own purpose-built Smart City Operating System thanks to Connexin.

This year, Connexin gave Sheffield a smart technology overhaul, using the CityOS platform to integrate, view, manage, and respond to information to improve highway maintenance services and revolutionise service delivery across the city and surrounding areas.

Connexin - in partnership with Cisco and Newcastle City Council - has helped deliver the UK’s smartest street, which was announced at the Great Exhibition of the North.

Connexin was named one of the Top 100 Fastest-Growing Technology Companies in the Northern Tech Awards.

Connexin recently hosted its annual Connexin Live event at the Bonus Arena in Hull.

For more information, visit Connexin

About Whitelam

Whitehelm is one of the world’s most experienced independently owned infrastructure managers.

With an outstanding track record spanning over 22 years, Whitehelm has invested in over 100 companies since inception and has over €3.4 billion in funds under management as of June 2020.

Whitehelm offers investment capabilities across unlisted infrastructure, listed infrastructure, and infrastructure debt.

For more information, visit whitehelmcapital.com