The representative of Sigfox appointed by the Commercial Court of Toulouse
The decision fell this Thursday, April 21: the commercial court announced the buyer of Sigfoxthe Toulouse start-up placed in legal redress on January 26. While four companies were still in the running, it was finally the Singaporean company UnaBiz which took over the Sigfox SA group and its subsidiary Sigfox France, specialist in the Internet of Things (IoT) based in Labège.
The Sigfox buyer co-founded by a former employee
One of the founders of buyer of Sigfox, Henri Bong, is also a former employee of the start-up. UnaBiz was already acting as an operator for Sigfox in Taiwan and Singapore. The management and employees of Sigfox had also expressed their preference for the offer issued by the Singaporean.
I would like to thank the entire Sigfox community for supporting us, and the French government for authorizing our investment. As the ownership transition marks a new beginning for Sigfox, UnaBiz will definitively guarantee Sigfox’s French sovereignty,” Henri Bong said in a press release.
Note that the future entity will not be relocated, a condition set by the toulouse commercial court. This takeover is accompanied by the retention of 110 employees out of the 168 employed by Sigfox. 58 will therefore be dismissed, a part having already resigned. The buyer also indicated that “new strategies and new governance will be put in place” in order to “support the long-term development of the company”.
Founded in 2010, Sigfox had been impacted by the health crisis. A social plan took place in September 2020: 47 employees left the company, including 25 voluntary departures.
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