Braveheart leads £2m Elonics funding

BRAVEHEART, the Scottish technology and commercialisation investor, has led a £2 million investment in Livingston-based semiconductor company Elonics.

Tycoons Sir Tom Farmer and Brian Souter and the Scottish Venture Fund also joined in the round of funding for the firm, which specialises in wireless silicon devices.

Elonics' key technology is DigitalTune, which is geared towards "flexible radio tuner chips", devices fitted in smart phones, laptops and mobile TV applications.

Although the market for such devices is currently small, it is forecast to grow rapidly over the next few years.

"Elonics has a comprehensive patent portfolio that places it in a strong position to capitalise on future developments in this fast evolving field," said Braveheart chief executive Geoffrey Thomson.

The latest funding will give Elonics, which was established in 2003, working capital to complete the development of its E4000 chip, with the aim of launching it on the market later this year.

Elonics chief executive David Srodzinski said: "The funding comes at an excellent time for us as the markets are rapidly growing and feedback is very good."