Nearfield Instruments, the developer of state-of-the art Metrology & Inspection (M&I) solutions for the semiconductor manufacturing industry, announced the successful closing of a €135 million Series C funding round. This oversubscribed funding round was led by two new major investors Walden Catalyst and Temasek. M&G Investments – through its Catalyst strategy – is acting as a co-investor. Existing investors Innovation Industries, Invest-NL, and ING also joined.
The growing challenges in advanced semiconductor manufacturing, which is driven by demand for higher performing and lower energy consuming chips, are addressed by Nearfield’s innovative process control solutions. And these include the QUADRA 3D metrology system that provides non-destructive, high-throughput, and high-resolution metrology capabilities.
Nearfield is heavily engaged with most major chip manufacturers globally and QUADRA is also fully validated and deployed in high-volume manufacturing.
Based in the Netherlands, Nearfield is embedded in the strong Dutch ecosystem of semiconductor innovation and investments, an industry that is expected to reach $1 trillion in global revenue by 2029. This funding round is the largest deep-tech investment round in the Netherlands and it is yet another testimony of the country’s leading position in semiconductors globally.
KEY QUOTES:
“We are thrilled that Nearfield’s’ QUADRA 3D metrology system has been fully integrated into the first major high-volume semiconductor manufacturing fab. This milestone solidifies our pioneering role in advancing critical metrology for leading-edge nodes. With significant contributions from investment leaders, we are well positioned to meet the growing demand for Metrology & Inspection in the coming decade. This funding will enable us to ramp up production capacity, expand our product portfolio, and strengthen our position as a key player in the semiconductor equipment industry.”
– Dr. Hamed Sadeghian, Co-Founder and CEO of Nearfield Instruments
“Advanced semiconductors are the key pillars for global innovation and growth. The next generation of semiconductors will be driven by Advanced Lithography and 3D Integration, with smaller features, deeper trenches, and tighter tolerances. The high-volume manufacturing of these next gen devices requires new process control tools to enable higher yield and throughput, and Nearfield’s metrology solutions are critical for solving these process control challenges. We are excited to partner with Hamed and his world-class team to further accelerate Nearfield’s growth.”
– Young Sohn, Founding Managing Partner at Walden Catalyst
“This fantastic outcome enables us to accelerate Nearfield’s efforts to provide unique solutions to meet the industry’s metrology and inspection needs for the most advanced nodes. Providing process control and yield improvement is critical in this global industry. It is great to see the continued support of our shareholders combined with the onboarding of new industry-leading investors who will reinforce our global view and network and cement the company’s position as the leader in Metrology & Inspection.”
– Eric Meurice, Chairman of the Nearfield Instruments Supervisory Board
