Cleantech Investor

First published in Cleantech Infocus: 2010 - Equity Deals of the Year, January 2011. Copyright Cleantech Investor Ltd.

The most high profile deal of the year in LEDs was the listing of Taiwanese LED manufacturer, SemiLEDs, on NASDAQ in December. SemiLEDs raised $79 million. Also in December, but at the other end of the scale, ProPhotonix listed on the AIM market in London, raising £0.8 million.

In terms of venture funding, the $62 million raised by Bridgelux in the US was the largest deal announced. It was closely followed by China’s Lattice Power, which raised $55 million. Lattice Power is notable for its GaN-on-silicon technology: other deals for companies with innovations in the GaN-on-silicon niche, which is attracting the attention of venture investors, included glo AB and Azzuro Semiconductors.

Elsewhere, notable venture investment deals in LEDs included Redwood Systems and Nualight – both focused on built environment applications for LEDs.