Sigfox
The business, the turning points, and the decisions behind them.
01 / WHAT IT BUILT
What the company did
Sigfox was a French IoT connectivity company based in Labège near Toulouse, founded by Ludovic Le Moan and Christophe Fourtet. It developed the Sigfox 0G protocol, a low-power wide-area network (LPWA) technology designed to connect low-power objects such as electricity meters securely and cheaply, transmitting small amounts of data. The technology was adopted by more than 70 network operators worldwide, and the company once employed over 375 people across France, Spain, the US, and Australia.
02 / Sigfox FAILURE REASONS
Failure reasons
Sigfox collapsed under the weight of its own capital intensity and a slower-than-expected adoption cycle for its technology, a problem compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite raising more than $300 million and reaching a valuation of around €600 million in 2016, the company never generated enough business to pay its bills, and it filed for insolvency in January 2022.
03 / EVENT HISTORY
Events in the structured record
- Company founded
Ludovic Le Moan and Christophe Fourtet found Sigfox near Toulouse, France, to build a global low-power wide-area network for the Internet of Things.
- Funding peak
Sigfox has raised more than $300 million from investors including Salesforce, Intel, Samsung, NTT, SK Telecom, Total, and Air Liquide, and is valued at around €600 million.
- Insolvency filing
In January 2022 Sigfox files for insolvency at the Commercial Court of Toulouse, blaming a slower-than-expected adoption cycle and the pandemic's impact on business.
- Acquisition by UnaBiz
On April 21, 2022, Singapore-based UnaBiz is selected from nine bidders to acquire Sigfox SA and Sigfox France SAS for a reported €25 million, safeguarding 110 of 174 employees; the 0G network continues operating under UnaBiz.
04 / CONTEMPORARY REBUILD ASSESSMENT
Difficulty of rebuilding this project today
Material for this section is being gathered and checked. It will appear here once ready.
Overall assessment: Not completed
05 / CAUSAL CHAIN
How the factors connect
- 01
Sigfox raised more than $300 million across five venture rounds through 2016 from Salesforce, Intel, Samsung, NTT, SK Telecom, Total, Air Liquide, and others.
- 02
The company entered insolvency proceedings in January 2022 after failing to generate enough revenue to cover its costs.
- 03
UnaBiz acquired the company out of receivership in April 2022 for a reported €25 million (about $27 million) - a fraction of the capital raised; no reliable realized-loss figure was disclosed.