Macalla secures €8.6m for expansion and R&D

Macalla Software, a provider of mobile Internet and multi-channel enabled software products, has secured second-round financing of €8.6 million (£6.77 million) to fund overseas expansion and research and development.

The investors include existing stakeholders 3i Group and the Guinness Ulster Bank Equity Fund. A new investor, The Reuters Greenhouse Fund, is understood to have taken an 18 per cent stake in the company through a €6.4 million investment.

Mr Niall O'Cleirigh, chief executive of Macalla, said the funding would value the company at about €35 million and enable it to expand its worldwide sales and marketing operations.

Since its launch in June 1998, the company has established sales offices in Dublin, London and New York. But it is now planning to establish European offices in Germany and Spain.

This expansion, together with additional spend in research and development, will mean a significant increase in staffing levels, according to Mr O'Cleirigh.

Macalla currently employs some 40 people at its Irish headquarters in Dublin and five people at its overseas offices. This is expected to grow to about 125 during the next 12 months, said Mr O'Cleirigh.

The company is seeking to broaden its product and client base from mobile e-commerce within the finance sector to encompass a wider variety of sectors within the economy.

Currently Macalla can count AIB, Dolmen Securities, Durlacher, Eircell, IG Index, JP Morgan, NCB Stockbrokers, Staal Bankiers and Ulster Bank among its customers.

Macalla's flagship product - Mobility - provides a complete and secure solution for deployment of personalised services across both Web and mobile Internet channels. The company hopes this will enable it to capitalise on the growth in the uptake of mobile technology in Europe, Asia and the US.

"There is a huge interest in the US and many US firms are seeking out European partners to help them get into this area," said Mr O'Cleirigh. "We have had offers for the company but we are in for the long haul."

Macalla was set up by six employees of CSK Software, formerly Quay Financial Services, and includes Enterprise Ireland among its original investors.