Tower Cloud Reels in $17 Million from Florida Opportunity Fund

TAMPA - St. Petersburg based wireless network and fiber optics firm TowerCloud, announced the close of a $17 million round of equity to fund its continued expansion throughout Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama. The latest round of funding was led by the Florida Opportunity Fund.

“Tower Cloud is a great fit with the Florida Opportunity Fund investment mission. The St. Petersburg-based company’s next generation wireless backhaul networks create high-tech Florida jobs while expanding communication infrastructure that allows for enhanced productivity in our State” said Jennifer Dunham, program manager.

This funding follows a $49 million equity commitment by the same investor group in 2011. Tower Cloud’s other existing institutional investors include: Sutter Hill Ventures, El Dorado Ventures, The Burton Partnership, Knology Inc., The Florida Growth Fund, Ballast Point Ventures, Kinetic Ventures, ITC Partners Fund, Noro-Moseley Partners and CLR Partners.

“We are grateful for the strong partnership we have with our investors,” said Thomas Guard, CFO of Tower Cloud. “We welcome the Florida Opportunity Fund as a new investor and are thankful for the continued support from our existing investor syndicate. We believe continued equity support of this magnitude, in this economic environment, is a strong endorsement of our industry, team and opportunity.”

The wireless backhaul market more than doubled last year while analysts forecast North American cellular-data usage will continue to grow over 70 percent per year through 2016. Tower Cloud is focused on providing solutions to wireless carriers’ exploding data needs by building networks designed to meet tomorrow’s forecasted capacity demand.