ACSL approaches flotation

Autonomous Control Systems Laboratory (ACSL), a Japan-based drone manufacturer spun out of Chiba University, successfully applied for an initial public offering on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Mothers Market on Friday, according to The Bridge.
The company plans to list on December 21.
Founded in 2013, ACSL is developing drones for enterprise and government clients. The underlying flight control technology is based on research by Kenzo Nonami, who was a professor at Chiba before founding the spinout.
ACSL previously raised $18.8m in a January 2018 round that featured University of Tokyo Edge Capital (Utec), the university venture fund of University of Tokyo, and led by corporate-backed investment partnership Mirai Creation Investment.
The round also featured Mizuho Capital, a subsidiary of bank Mizuho Financial Group, iGlobe Partners and Chiba Drone Investment.
Utec had already co-led a $6.3m series A round in 2016 together with e-commerce firm Rakuten.
Utec owns a 19.9% stake ahead of the flotation, while Rakuten owns 12.8% and manufacturing services provider Kikuchi holds a 9.7% stake. It is not clear when or how much Kikuchi invested, but the corporate owned shares in the spinout as of March 2016.
Nonami owns a 14.2% stake in the spinout.
Mizuho Securities is acting as lead underwriter for the proposed offering.