ChargeBox successfully raise £500K through Crowdcube

Raised equity will now fund expansion for the international leader in mobile charging technology.

London, 5th February 2016 - ChargeBox, the world’s leading provider of secure mobile charging technology, became one of the latest funded companies of 2015 on Crowdcube, the leading equity crowdfunding platform, reaching their £500K target on 24th December and joining the “funded club”. Overwhelmed by the response from professional and private investors, ChargeBox is very well positioned to deliver on their mission of bringing free charging everywhere. With a strong international component to the investment, the platform for worldwide growth is also further enhanced.

ChargeBox first priority for investment is staff, with significant expansion in the Sales, Engineering/Operations and Technology teams. Rob Scali and Sarah Dyer have recently joined as Chief Financial Officer and UK Operations Manger respecitvely. Rob joined after a longer career with technology solution provided Schlumberger, which has given him a worldwide experience of business operations and finance. Sarah joined from the ATM industry where she successfully grew a fleet from around 400 units to over 8,000 - an increase of 20 times - which she is now looking to repeat at ChargeBox. Additional team members were also welcomed in Sales and Engineering/Operations at the start of January. 

ChargeBox will also use the investment raised to step up their marketing and Research and Development activities. ChargeBox is already the world’s leading supplier of free secure public charging services - from being the first to deliver such a service back in 2006, to being the first to charge more than 5 million devices a year. The company has built over 2,000 units, and exported more than 1,000 of those to over 33 countries worldwide. ChargeBox units are now installed in shopping centres, airports, universities and conference centres all around the world, with new markets and territories constantly being developed.

All units are built using ChargeBox Smart Lock technology - providing the very best levels of security which PIN-based and card-based solutions cannot match. In 2013 ChargeBox introduced their second generation Smart Lock system which is now patented. In November 2015 they became the first company to deliver a service for USB Type-C devices at Sephora Flash, the first connected store launched by French beauty retailer Sephora in Paris.

Ian Hobson, CEO said: “It’s been a tremendous journey, crowdfunding has enabled us to raise the funds we need to grow our business and deliver on our mission of bringing free charging everywhere. Our team have risen to the occasion and we could not have achieved this without their efforts. I’m delighted that many of our existing investors have stepped up, and to welcome 160 new investors who have backed our vision. I’m also delighted with the potential from many of our new investors to help us grow our business - especially in key international markets. We are excited to be expanding our business for the benefit of the UK economy and the benefit of every smartphone user who needs our services.”

Having reached their crowdfunding target, the first action of ChargeBox will be to install one of their mobile charging stations at the Birmingham Children Hospital, to provide free and easy to use charging to young patients and their visiting families.

To download the Press Release, click here.