Auckland-based photonics company Quantifi has raised $15 million from a laundry list of New Zealand funders.  

The series B raise was led by Punakaiki Fund which invested $5m, funded from the proceeds of the sale of Vend earlier this year.  

The company will use the funds to accelerate the development of its optical transceivers which convert high-speed electrical data to and from optical data – which carry more data and use less power.

Quantifi co-founder Andy Stevens said they were one of only two companies able to meet requirements for high-end optical transceivers.

“We have significant opportunities with a number of existing customers, and we are one hundred percent focused on becoming a leading supplier to the world’s largest photonics manufacturers over the next five years,” he said.

Punakaiki director Lance Wiggs said the round had closed at a much higher level than anticipated.

“It says a lot about what Andy and the team are building, as well as the health of the New Zealand investing ecosystem,” he said.

Two new investors emerged to take part in this round.

Kiwisaver provider Simplicity chipped in $4m as its first ever direct private equity investment.

Managing director Sam Stubbs said this would be the first in a series of private equity investments the fund has planned.

“As part of our fully diversified strategy, we will invest into privately held companies with meaningful revenue and strong fundamentals. We intend to create, over time, enough holdings to have an index on strong privately held businesses in New Zealand,” he said.

New venture fund, Nuance Connected Capital, made a $1m investment after launching in May this year. The fund is led by Ngaio Merrick and Adrien Gheur with a cornerstone investment from Alvarium.

Other backers included Pacific Channel, K1W1, and NZ Capital Growth Partners’ Aspire Fund.

Quantifi develops and manufactures advanced photonics test and measurement solutions.

The company has developed a broad portfolio of benchtop and modular instruments, as well as software test solutions, and is a supplier to multinational technology companies in over 25 countries.

Nuance Connected Capital’s Ngaio Merrick said Quantifi Photonics was “well placed to scale internationally” with the support of the new investors.