Field service automation company ViryaNet (Nasdaq: VRYA) is in the midst of a PIPE (private investment in a public entity) financing round, expected to raise $7 million. Participants will include Shrem-Fudim-Kelner (SFK) and GE Capital, the venture capital fund of General Electric (NYSE: GE). The Tamir Fishman investment will manage the financing round. GE Capital’s investment runs counter to its announcement a month ago that it would not make new high-tech investments. GE Capital is already a ViryaNet investor, together with Clal Venture Capital Fund, Star Ventures Enterprises, and the Advanced Technology Ventures (ATV) fund.
ViryaNet and Tamir Fishman declined to respond to the report, and no response was available from SFK or GE Capital.
ViryaNet’s works with communications companies. The company also deals with links between companies and their customers and suppliers.
There has been a dearth of orders in ViryaNet’s field for a long time, due to the global communications slowdown, and the company is therefore trying to enter the electricity, gas, and water utilities market. The acquisition of US company Imedeon for $2.85 million a little less than a year ago was part of this effort. ViryaNet also operates in the field of enterprise portals, which has been gathering momentum recently, and it is believed that the company will focus on this field, and on connectivity between its products and the portals.
The ViryaNet share trades at $0.84, reflecting a market value of $2.2 million. The company lost $4.1 million on revenue of $1.7 million in the last quarter.
Company chairman Samuel HaCohen founded ViryaNet in 1998, and president and CEO Winifried Burke joined the company in 1999. The company laid off a quarter of its workers in the third quarter, leaving it with 80 employees.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on December 12, 2002