Mildex Optical Inc (熒茂光學) and its offshore subsidiary, Mildex Asia Co, yesterday secured a three-year syndicated loan of NT$600 million (US$18.2 million) and US$18 million respectively from seven domestic banks, the loan’s lead bank Chang Hwa Bank (彰化銀行) said in a press statement.
The banks oversubscribed the loans by 55 percent on Mildex Optical’s latest breakthrough in the mass production of touch panels, even though the companies had just requested NT$500 million and US$15 million respectively, the statement said.
Banks taking part in the loan package include Taiwan Cooperative Bank (合作金庫銀行), Taiwan Business Bank (台灣中小企銀) and Land Bank of Taiwan (土地銀行).
The banks are bullish about Mildex Optical’s prospects in anticipation of business picking up after the launch of Microsoft’s Windows 7 later this year, the statement said.
Citing a research report, Chang Hwa said the output value of touch panels is expected to reach NT$100 billion this year. Daiwa Securities SMBC-Cathay Co (大和國泰) said last month that the penetration of touch panels used in notebooks would rise significantly over the next two years.
The penetration of touch screen notebooks was expected to triple from 4 percent this year to 12 percent next year and 20 percent in 2011, Daiwa analyst Emma Tang (唐婉倩) said in a report on June 2.
Mildex Optical, founded in 2005, had focused previously on the production of touch panels for military and industrial uses. It moved into the consumer touch panel market last year, the statement said.
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