Business & Tech

Applied DNA Scores Distribution Contract, Millions in Investments

Stony Brook based anticounterfeiting company looking to expand.

Stony Brook-based company Applied DNA Sciences announced Monday it has received $5 million in financing, just days after it announced an arrangement for distribution of one of its DNA authentication products.

The financing represented the company's first institutional finance move and came by way of a common stock private placement sale.

"The company’s revenues have grown, while its contracts have diversified. In order to support this growing demand, the management at Applied DNA Sciences believed this was an opportune time to secure additional capital," the company said in a statement.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

Two of the investors, Gerald Catenacci of Neustrada Capital and John Bitzer III of Abarta, will join Applied DNA's board of directors in the next month.

The company said it has added jobs, increased its lineup of customers and partners, and has expanded its product line in recent months.

Interested in local real estate?Subscribe to Patch's new newsletter to be the first to know about open houses, new listings and more.

"In a time of extraordinary market pressure, we are steadily growing and redefining what customers expect from security technology solutions,” CEO and president James Hayward said in a statement.

Last week, Applied DNA announced it has reached an exclusive agreement with Hauppauge-based Disc Graphics to distribute one of its unique botanical DNA marker products, SigNature DNA, for the purpose of authenticating product labels to prevent counterfeiting.

Disc Graphics manufactures and distributes custom packaging solutions for its customers, which include pharmaceutical manufacturers, film studios, and fragrance and luxury brand name companies. It has been using DNA markers developed specifically for Disc Graphics by Applied DNA Sciences.

"Packaging is on the front line of fighting counterfeiters and we are excited to make DNA an integral part of our overarching package security program," said Margaret Krumholz, president of Disc Graphics.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here