VC-backed robot suit maker files for Tokyo IPO

According to a release, the Ibaraki-based company plans to list on the MOTHERS (market of the high-growth and emerging stocks) section of the Tokyo stock exchange on March 26,  selling 2.11 million shares, 1.22 million of which will be new shares.

Cyberdyne was set up in 2004 on the back of research by Professor Yoshiyuki Sankai of the University of Tsukuba. The company's flagship product is its HAL (Hybrid Assistive Limb) system, a kind of robotic exoskeleton that gives the wearer amplified strength.

The company - which currently has JPY6.63 billion ($64.6 million) in capital - has a number of products in various stages of development: from lower-limb and single-joint support to full-body robotic suits.

The HAL system has both medical applications for people with disabilities as well as industrial applications - for example, in lifting heavy loads at a factory or in disaster recovery scenarios.

Jafco currently owns a 10.04% stake in the business through two separate vehicles, while DBJ and Nissay own 2.3% and 1.28%, respectively. Other investors include construction firm Daiwa House Group, Century Tokyo Leasing, Fukushima Growth Industry Development Fund, Ibraki Enterprise Incubation Fund and SBI BB Media Fund.

SMBC Nikko will serve as the lead underwriter for the offering.

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• Technology
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• The Development Bank of Japan (DBJ)