WeLink Secures $185 Million Funding from Digital Alpha to Revolutionize the Future of Ultra-High Speed Wireless Broadband
News Highlights:
- WeLink to expand fixed-wireless footprint into ten new US markets, giving consumers and businesses better choices for gigabit internet access.
- WeLink plans to continue growing in Las Vegas, NV, and launch in Phoenix and Tucson, AZ in Q2 2021.
- New capital from Digital Alpha leverages innovative financing structure tailored to accelerate new market entry and customer adoption.
LEHI, Utah, January 7, 2021 – WeLink, a rapidly-growing, next-generation fixed-wireless broadband provider, today announced a $185 million investment from Digital Alpha Advisors to expand to new markets across the United States. WeLink provides industry-leading, high-speed broadband access to homes and businesses at up to gigabit speeds, connecting the unconnected and expanding and improving access.
“More than 77 percent of US consumers have only one choice of broadband provider when they want internet access speeds faster than 100 Mbps,” said Kevin Ross, CEO of WeLink. “WeLink is addressing this challenge by expanding our fairly-priced, fixed-wireless broadband solution to new markets, giving consumers greater freedom of choice in broadband access scaling to gigabit speeds. This is even more important today as the COVID pandemic has changed the balance of work and school from home”
Founded in 2018 by wireless industry veterans Kevin Ross and Ahsan Naim, WeLink delivers broadband internet to homes and businesses using a unique fixed-wireless approach that is much quicker and less expensive to deploy than traditional fiber-to-the-home. WeLink extends the reach of fiber into residential and commercial areas using the latest advances in millimeter wave (mmWave) technology (one of the key wireless technologies used as part of 5G), 802.11ay silicon, and modern network routing approaches such as Open/R to deliver quality of experience that has not been achievable using legacy wireless technologies.
Digital Alpha, a premier alternative asset manager focused on digital infrastructure, will make a $185 million investment that includes a unique outcome-based financing structure that will fuel network expansion and subscriber acquisition. This will enable WeLink to accelerate its plans to grow its current footprint in the Las Vegas metro area and also to expand into two additional metro areas, Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona, in Q2 2021, with seven additional markets slated for future launches. Digital Alpha’s investment also enables new partnership opportunities with Cisco, one of Digital Alpha’s key partners.
“The WeLink team stands out for their experience in wireless access,” said Rick Shrotri, Founder and Managing Partner at Digital Alpha Advisors. “WeLink offers an industry-leading approach to deliver next generation connectivity to customers in select markets across America. Given Digital Alpha’s strong focus on next generation networking, including 5G solutions, we are pleased to offer a unique outcome-based financing solution, which along with a strategic Cisco partnership, will provide fuel for WeLink’s expansion.”
“We’re thrilled to take this next step with WeLink to enable the future of fixed-wireless broadband,” said John Chapman, Cisco Fellow and CTO of Cisco’s Broadband business. “Their approach of using fixed-wireless to provide high-speed broadband internet access helps to drive digital transformation and accelerate an inclusive future for all.”
With this investment, Digital Alpha will become the leading outside investor in WeLink and has appointed Rick Shrotri and Neil Sheridan to the board, bringing decades of technology and telecommunications experience.
About WeLink
WeLink wants to be the best ISP you’ve ever had. By using the latest fixed wireless technology to extend the reach of fiber, WeLink’s wireless fiber approach provides up to gigabit speeds for less than what the competition charges. With good service and fair pricing (including loyalty discounts that make your bill go down over time instead of up like some providers), WeLink is the last ISP you’ll ever use. It currently offers service in the Las Vegas metro area with plans to expand in the future. Founded in 2018 by wireless veterans, WeLink is led by Kevin Ross, former co-founder of Vivint Wireless and Smartrove and Luke Langford, former co-founder of Vivint Wireless. For a video overview of WeLink’s service, watch this video.
To join WeLink’s waitlist or signup for our service, visit https://welink.com/sign-up.
To join our team and bring better internet to the world, visit https://welink.com/careers.
About Digital Alpha
Digital Alpha Advisors, LLC is an investment firm focused on digital infrastructure and services required by the digital economy, with a strategic collaboration agreement with Cisco Systems, Inc. As part of this agreement, Digital Alpha has preferred access to Cisco’s pipeline of commercial opportunities requiring equity financing. Digital Alpha believes that it is the first fund focused on making private equity investments in the significant growth opportunities required to underpin the Digital Economy, including smart cities, next generation broadband networks, and enterprise data management and communication solutions. Digital Alpha was founded by Rick Shrotri, Head of the Global Infrastructure Funds (GIF) team at Cisco, and closed its first Fund – Digital Alpha Fund, LP – in 2017. For more information, please visit www.digitalalpha.net.
