Truphone: the next mobile giant?
by Peter Kneller - Friday, 18th April 2008 -
Mobile technology firm Truphone has just secured £16.5m venture funding. Not bad for an entrepreneurial business that started in a Kent barn.
UK company Truphone, a voice over internet protocol provider for mobile phones, has received £16.5m (€21m) in a second round of funding led by a number of private investors.
Existing backers Burda Digital Ventures, Eden Ventures, Independent News & Media, and Wellington Partners also participated in the financing.
Global mobile operator Truphone enables free and low-cost mobile phone calls via the internet. “We aim to provide ultimate price and convenience, wherever you are. One world, one SIM,” says James Tagg, Truphone’s CEO. “Beyond that, as a ‘Voice 2.0’ company we can start to develop and introduce new internet-based features and applications that give customers a richer mobile experience.”
The company has also completed its GSM core network after the recent purchase of SIM4travel. The move will allow Truphone to offer low-cost GSM calls worldwide via a travel SIM.
The company, which started life on an organic farm in Kent (see picture), received a £12.5m first round of funding in early 2007.
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