Landways announces capital raise led by Newlight Partners
- Newlight Partners and existing investor Columbia Capital have agreed on a significant equity investment to accelerate growth
- The investment will be used for continued growth in the sports and entertainment sector, expansion into the logistics market, and to scale the platform and senior leadership team
Landways, the UK’s leading provider of integrated in-building digital and power infrastructure, has today announced a significant equity investment from investment firm Newlight Partners and existing investor Columbia Capital to accelerate growth. The investment will be used for continued growth in the sports and entertainment sector, expansion into the logistics market, and to scale the platform and senior leadership team.
Until now, Landways’ service offering has been structured to suit the requirements of sports and entertainment venues, working with club owners to develop future-proofed, high-density Wi-Fi, crystal-clear audio systems, and surveillance camera systems to support matchday safety and improve the fan experience. Whilst these systems are directly transferable into the logistics market, Landways is also expanding the systems it provides to address the requirements of the logistics sector, such as the growth in robotics and automation, efficient LED lighting, solar panels and energy storage, and fleet and material handling equipment electrification.
Landways’ Founder and CEO, Chris Smedley, comments: “The investment from Newlight comes at a pivotal time in Landways’ growth. We see a huge opportunity to expand into an industrial market that values our innovative approach and where demands for digital connectivity and energy-efficient operational systems continue to grow year on year. Our modular platform, which combines DC (Direct Current) power and optical fibre connectivity for a wide range of technology systems, gives asset owners the confidence they need to invest. Our expansion into another market sector is proof that the Landways proposition can be adapted to any large-scale, mission-critical site looking to utilise modern technology to lower costs, minimise its impact on the environment and increase resiliency.”
Joshua Ho-Walker of Newlight Partners adds: “Digital transformation plays a vital part in the future of all industries and is fundamental to this investment strategy. We are pleased to be working with Landways during an exciting time in its expansion, providing its experienced leadership team with the growth capital and support they need to execute on this opportunity.”
Columbia Capital has previously worked with Newlight on similar joint investments in the US and European markets.
Columbia Capital partner, John Siegel, adds: “We are delighted to have Newlight join as the latest investor in Landways. At Columbia Capital, we pride ourselves on identifying and investing in businesses that are redefining or creating entirely new industries. We believe Landways’ team of specialists are changing the face of digital and power infrastructure with its patented technology and unique ‘Infrastructure-as-a-Service’ model – and we are committed to helping them on their journey.”
About Landways
Landways designs, funds, builds, and operates digital and power infrastructure and mission-critical technology systems for high-density venues, logistics sites and other buildings. Its optical fibre and direct current power infrastructure is revolutionising the way businesses connect and power their technology systems.
Using pioneering designs, Landways delivers a long-life, resilient, and upgradeable platform capable of supporting multiple, high-performance technology systems – now and into the future. This approach is much more efficient than conventional techniques and avoids the costs of ripping out and replacing old infrastructure, significantly reducing lifetime costs. With an Infrastructure as a Service model, building owners avoid large up-front costs and transfer the risk of technology selection, operation, and upgrades to a specialist operator. Business owners only pay the monthly fee if they receive the excellent performance that Landways guarantees to provide.
About Newlight Partners
Newlight Partners LP is a growth-focused private equity firm that builds businesses in partnership with exceptional founders and management teams. The Newlight team, led by David Wassong and Ravi Yadav, has been investing together since 2005, originally as the Strategic Investments Group at Soros Fund Management LLC, and now as Newlight after the team’s spin-out in 2018. Newlight’s thematic investment approach focuses on identifying and addressing marketplace opportunities in rapidly growing subsectors. Areas of focus include digital transformation, decarbonization, financial services, and healthcare. Newlight currently has over $2.5 billion in capital commitments and assets under management.
About Columbia Capital
Columbia Capital was founded over 30 years ago and, in that time, has developed a profitable and repeatable investment model guided by a specialised and experienced team. Columbia focuses on the Communications & Technology space, having raised $5B in fund commitments for portfolio companies operating in digital infrastructure, enterprise technology, and mobility. The firm invests out of its seventh fund, a $600M vehicle.