M Squared Lasers bags £3.25m Barclays deal

TECHNOLOGY firm M Squared Lasers is planning for a “period of accelerated growth” in the global export market after securing a £3.25 million funding package.
The lasers have applications including cancer detection. Picture: ContributedThe lasers have applications including cancer detection. Picture: Contributed
The lasers have applications including cancer detection. Picture: Contributed

The Glasgow-based company, which develops and manufactures next-generation lasers and “photonic instruments”, has received backing from Barclays and the Business Growth Fund.

A new customer to Barclays, the company has received a funding package worth more than £2.5m. The deal will allow it to increase exports to key global markets including North America – an area where sales are already experiencing substantial growth.

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M Squared received a further £750,000 from BGF, following on from earlier investment of £3.85m in 2012.

Co-founder Graeme Malcolm said: “We’ve been expanding our export business for some time and have been making great headway in world markets. This latest investment will provide important support as we continue to pursue our ambitious growth objectives.

“Our US business has been growing strongly, with revenues doubling in 2014 as a result of rising demand for laser systems in areas such as quantum technologies. We were impressed by the specialist sector knowledge from Barclays and look forward to developing our relationship in the years ahead.”

Founded in 2006, M Squared already has offices in the US, including Silicon Valley. It says its products have “a wide range of potential applications” including oil and gas exploration, cancer detection, through to the discovery of explosives through spectral scans.

A large growth area for the company is expected to be the application of quantum technology, which is being harnessed to create a new generation of electronics, including sensor instrumentation, communications systems and powerful computer processing systems.

M Squared currently employs more than 50 staff and has a turnover of £10m. It achieved year-on-year revenue growth of 40 per cent in 2014 and expects similar annual growth this year.

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