Irish telecoms firm Perlico has raised €3.7m in funding that it plans to use to consolidate its position as a leading provider of voice, dial-up internet and broadband DSL services.
The investment, which is understood to have come from a group of private investors will be used to fund the company’s continued customer acquisition drive within the corporate, small business and residential sectors.
Perlico was formed in 2001 by entrepreneur Iain MacDonald, who was a significant investor in Irish call centre Solar Marketing before selling it to US company IMS. He was one of the first European employees in Nasdaq quoted Intergraph Corp. It is understood that his frustration in finding an efficient telco provider in Ireland while operating these businesses motivated the foundation of Perlico.
Perlico’s fundraising has been arranged through a number of Irish private investors. The company’s board of directors and investors include Dr Jim Mountjoy who has 30 years’ experience in the telco sector. He was a co-founder of Euristix which was sold to Fore Systems in 1999 for US$80m, a value that increased to US$175m in two months when the company was acquired by Marconi. Perlico’s chairman is Malcolm MacDonald, former senior manager of corporate finance at ICC Bank.
“Our value-for-money, quality-orientated model has generated a terrific response from both the business and residential market and we have built a strong, loyal customer base in each of our target markets,” commented Iain MacDonald, chief executive, Perlico.
“Irish customers are increasingly enthusiastic about the quality of service and low prices that are now available from Perlico. Our fresh approach is delivering the benefits of competition – and driving significant customer demand.”
By John Kennedy
