Press release

SMARTWATER LTD SECURES £14M IN FUNDING FROM SANTANDER IN SUPPORT OF ACQUISITION OF PID SYSTEMS LTD

SmartWater Ltd, the award-winning forensic technology company based in Telford, has secured £14 million in new funding from Santander Corporate & Commercial in support of the group’s working capital requirements and the acquisition of Perimeter Intruder Detection (PID) Systems Limited.

SmartWater scientists have patented a new system of liquid traceability that uses a robust form of encrypted 'microdata', with water being the application medium. The company is the world’s largest security provider of forensic taggants (uniquely encoded materials or chemistries that are virtually impossible to duplicate) used in the protection of national critical infrastructures and corporate assets. They have a rapidly expanding footprint in the manufacturing sector, where the liquid based ‘microdata’ is used to establish the production information of safety critical components, even years after they have been installed.

The acquisition of PID further enhances SmartWater’s security proposition on vacant, vulnerable or hazardous sites. Founded in 2007, PID’s product is a cost efficient smart-tech (‘robotised’) alternative to manned guarding of industrial sites, with in-house alarm monitoring centre. The units are portable and rapidly deployable, from a nationwide depot network, with video data capturing and sharing (IoT-enabled) over mobile network, offering both time-lapsed and AI capabilities. A team of former police and military personnel operate 24/7 in PID’s Alarm Receiving Centre control room in Prestwick, Scotland, monitoring and creating incident reports when alarms are activated and, if necessary, deploying their rapid reaction security teams.

Phil Cleary, CEO & Founder of SmartWater, said: “This acquisition is totally aligned with our current operational activity, protecting the key assets and infrastructure of our commercials clients. Working with the team at Santander has been like a breath of fresh air, as their understanding of the needs of rapidly growing business likes ours, bodes well for our future, particularly as we move to further expand our international footprint.”

Navin Dabasia, Structured Finance Director Santander Corporate & Commercial, said: “Both SmartWater and PID have demonstrated a track record of success and growth in their own rights, and the combination of the two business will further enhance the Company’s position in the private security market. We are delighted that Santander, which is focused on helping customers to grow, has been able to support SmartWater with this acquisition and we look forward to building a long-term relationship with the Company.“

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Notes to Editors

For media enquiries regarding SmartWater Limited, please contact:

Phil Cleary T: 0797 964 5509 E: [email protected]

Follow @smartwaternews Website: www.smartwater.com

Media Enquiries regarding Santander, please contact:

Lara Lipsey T: 020 7756 4518 M: 07713 560 209 E: [email protected]

Millie Allen T: 020 7756 4221 M: 07845 051 938 E: [email protected]

Follow @santanderuknews on Twitter Website: www.santandercb.co.uk

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