London-based mobile operator, Truphone, raised £255 million in funding through a successful rights issue. As a global company, Truphone’s next steps are to expand into new territories, and retire all of its debt.

This new investment will also go into Truphone’s entry into the connected devices market, which are expected to total 50 billion by 2020.

“I see this latest investment as a significant vote of confidence from our investors in our growth strategy, and our ambition to continue scaling the business globally. It is an important step in achieving our long-term goal to power billions of connected devices around the world,” Ralph Steffens, CEO, Truphone said.

According to Steffens, in the future, mobile connectivity capabilities will be included in the manufacturing process of anyInternet of Things (IoT) device. This means devices can go anywhere in the world and users can enjoy out of the box connectivity.

Truphone’s Connectivity EcoSystem combines mobile connectivity, SIM technology and a management platform, which Steffens says is unique to the market.

The investment comes shortly after Truphone agreed a strategic partnership with Apple. Now iPad users in more than 50 countries can use the same data plan while travelling on Apple e-SIM.

Truphone is also working with KIA to roll out its connectivity offerings, which will be installed in thousands of KIA connected cars across Europe this year.

Truphone now has over 3,500 enterprise customers, and is available in 220 countries and territories. The business is expected to be profitable in 2018.