UK venture capitalist Perwyn has acquired a majority stake in Jersey Telecom’s IoT division.

The business, which has doubled in size every year for the past three years, provides device connectivity services to customers around the world, with almost ten million JT SIMs in active use.

The division was created in 2014 as part of JT’s international expansion drive, and the acquisition has been timed to increase the growth potential of the business. The business will remain headquartered in Jersey and JT will retain a minority stake.

“Perwyn has a major focus on, and experience in, technology enabled services,” said Mark Blower, a partner at Perwyn. “Therefore, the IoT business fits perfectly into our stable alongside our other investments in other high growth tech sectors such as web hosting and analytics. Fortunately for us, our growth themes have not changed in a Covid-19, or post Covid-19 world. If anything, the IoT will continue to take off as the adoption of device usage expands.”

Phil Male, JT’s chairman, added: “I am immensely proud of the hard work, talent and commitment which the JT team have shown to get our IoT business to this point. Together we have grown this business from inception into an entity now worthy of a sale at this scale. This sale not only shows the vast potential and value of Jersey’s digital sector, but also demonstrates that within Jersey we have both the human talent and the funding to enable and build globally successful digital businesses.”

He said now was the right time for JT to sell the majority of this business to turbo-charge that success.

“While retaining a minority stake and becoming a supplier to Jersey’s biggest technology business, we believe that in Perwyn we have a new owner for the business with the vision and risk appetite to fund and grow this young, dynamic and growing global Jersey business,” said Male.

JT has built a reputation as a supplier of global IoT connectivity, applying its telco assets to provide cellular connectivity and remote management of close to ten million SIMs and connected devices across the world.

JT IoT has demonstrated consistent strong revenue growth since its launch in 2014. Supported by a team of 70 people and more than 500 roaming agreements with global operators, it offers multiple network access through a single SIM, providing robust, secure and always-on connectivity. Its in-house developed Nomad CMP connectivity management platform provides a differentiated experience through real-time monitoring and control of large SIM estates.

“We are extremely pleased to have secured the purchase of JT’s IoT business,” said Andrew Wynn, Perwyn founder. “We have been watching JT’s development in this space for some time with great interest and are impressed by both the speed and scale of their success and growth in this area. They are now one of the most attractive players in this global market. The process of dealing with JT and the island of Jersey during this transaction has been collaborative and productive. We are confident this relationship will bring benefits to Jersey, as well as augmenting the island’s future attractiveness as an incubator for leading-edge innovative businesses. We look forward to working with the JT team to complete the transaction, which is one of important size and scale for us.”

From its origins in Jersey in 1888, JT is a global telecommunications firm, employing more than 600 people in seven global locations. Owned by the people of Jersey, JT has completed a socially inclusive project to install a full-fibre broadband network in Jersey, making the island the first jurisdiction in the world to have 100% full-fibre connectivity to all premises, with the second fastest broadband speeds in the world.