Touch Bionics handed £2.5m to back its global expansion plans

Around half of the fresh funding for the company – which has an annual turnover of some £10m and 80 staff split between Scotland and the United States – has been provided by angel investor Archangels with match funding from the Scottish Venture Fund.

It comes less than a year after Clydesdale Bank provided a similar amount in loan facilities to the firm.

Touch Bionics, which was spun out of NHS Scotland in 2003, is regarded as a world leader in prosthetic technologies and supporting services for people with upper limb deficiencies.

Last month it launched the “i-limb ultra hand”, an upgraded version of its prosthetic hand, which gives patients the ability to vary the strength of their grip finger-by-finger, allowing them to pick up delicate objects but also apply more pressure to get a secure hold on heavier items.

It has also developed a system which accurately captures the colour and appearance of limbs for silicone prostheses.

The company said today that the latest funding will enable it to significantly increase its sales infrastructure and support product development.

Chief executive Ian Stevens said: “Our new products, backed by a growing sales and support organisation, will ensure that we continue to provide the best prosthetic solutions to our customers and this investment provides us with the financial backing to support these objectives.”

John Waddell, chief executive of Archangels, which is Scotland’s largest provider of angel funding, said Touch Bionics had presented a business plan that showed “both innovation and vision”.

“The company has already established itself as a world leader in its field and we think the investment announced today will help consolidate that position and develop the next generation of products,” Waddell added.

Touch Bionics appointed Stevens, who was previously chief executive of Scottish medical device company Mpathy Medical, as replacement for Stuart Mead in May.

Alongside Stevens’ appointment, Jill McGregor joined the company as chief financial officer from retinal imaging company Optos.

The Scottish Venture Fund was set up by Scottish Enterprise in conjunction with the Scottish Government to invest between £500,000 and £2m – alongside private sector partners – in company finance deals of between £2m and £10m.

The fund is managed by the Scottish Investment Bank and is part funded by the European Regional Development Fund.

Earlier this year, it backed a £5m fundraising by Glasgow-based software security firm Metaforic to expand its international sales and marketing activity. Other investors in the funding round included Scottish Equity Partners, Pentech Ventures and employees.