iScreen Vision, Inc. (www.iscreenvision.com), a leading provider of pediatric vision screening equipment and services, today announced it raised $4.0 million in a Series B funding round led by MB Venture Partners.
The latest round raised $2.5 million in new money and converted $1.5 million of debt into Series B shares for a total round of $4.0 million. Investors in the round included MB Venture Partners, a new investor in iScreen Vision; Innova, who led the company's Series A round and was a significant participant in the Series B round; and other new and existing private investors.
iScreen Vision had record sales in the first nine months of 2013 as an increasing number of pediatricians and commercial payers recognized the importance of instrument-based pediatric vision screening in identifying vision abnormalities earlier than traditional screening methods with an eye chart.
"Our triple-digit growth rate in sales in 2013 shows that pediatricians are responding very positively to the company's affordable entry costs, ease of use, electronic records storage, local sales and support, and analysis by trained technicians," said Buck Brown, CEO of iScreen Vision. "An increasing number of pediatricians recognize the need for earlier detection of childhood vision problems, including the most serious ones that are risk factors for amblyopia, the leading cause of vision loss in children."
Gary Stevenson, co-founder and managing partner of MB Venture Partners, joined iScreen Vision's Board of Directors. The firm has been an investor in medical device and other life sciences companies since its founding in 2001. "iScreen Vision is well positioned to capture a significant share of the pediatric vision screening market with its patented cloud-based system," Mr. Stevenson said. "We believe the company has outstanding growth prospects."
"iScreen Vision's solutions meet a pressing marketplace need for new and innovative vision screening solutions for children," said Jan Bouten, a member of iScreen Vision's Board of Directors and a partner at Innova. We are pleased with iScreen Vision's progress to date and are excited to continue supporting its growth."
The investments from MB Ventures Partners and Innova were both from funds formed under the Tennessee Small Business Company Investment Credit Act (TNInvestco).
Proceeds from the latest financing will be used primarily to expand iScreen Vision's sales presence domestically; to launch the company's international sales efforts; to ramp up production to keep up with rising demand from pediatricians and non-profit vision screening programs; and to increase research and development to continue to enhance the company's products and services.
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