​Quantify to list on ASX after AU$5m reverse takeover

Quantify Technology Holdings will be listing on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on Wednesday morning, with the Perth-based company completing its reverse takeover (RTO) of WHL Energy.

After raising AU$5 million to fund the backdoor listing, WHL Energy will be renamed to Quantify Technology and will cease its interest in exploring oil and gas in East Africa and Australia to focus on the Internet of Things (IoT).

According to the company, the oversubscribed million-dollar raise puts Quantify in a position to enter the IoT market in full force and the AU$5 million will be used for sales, business development, R&D, engineering, and working capital.

Quantify is developing technology to create intelligent buildings, with the same technology aiming to provide a foundation to enable the creation of secure IoT devices.

Although Quantify is in the business of power points and light switches, founder and managing director Mark Lapins told ZDNet previously there is more to his company than just that.

"IoT is big and confusing and we're trying to simplify it down," Lapins said. "I see a massive challenge when you've got hundreds of vendors taking their own implementations out into the world and today's drive in the market is to rush your product to market as quickly as possible and so security always takes a second place."

Lapins and his IoT "game changer" has the backing of some pretty large technology heavyweights. Cisco Systems Australia founder Aidan Montague is currently Quantify's chair and former Microsoft Australia chief Gary Jackson is on the company's share register.

The IoT firm will find itself in the company of more than 100 technology firms that have debuted on the exchange in the past two years, mainly appearing via RTO, but it isn't necessarily the company Lapins wants Quantify associated with.

"A lot of them [RTOs] have been a real disaster," he said previously. "The problem is they're not ready."

Lapins explained that often startups perform a backdoor listing to access funds as soon as possible, as they haven't been able to get the money they needed beforehand.

"In Australia, for a tech startup, there is no support," he said. "VC money is not as easy to get as everyone says unless you're willing to give your company away."

"Some of the other IoT startups out there have made massive promises before they've actually got a tangible product in their hand -- they've done it all to get the funding to go and do it -- but the shareholders don't understand that.

"That is why I think some tech reverse takeovers are a bit on the nose."

Last month, Singapore's Sports Hub found itself on the ASX after performing its own RTO of Nevada Iron Limited.

The sport-focused social media site raised AU$3.2 million through the listing of 64 million shares at AU$0.05 each.