PixelOptics Closes $45 Million Financing

ROANOKE, Va., April 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — PixelOptics
(“Pixel”), the world’s first electronic focusing eyeglass company,
announced today the successful closing of a $45M financing lead by
Safeguard Scientifics, Inc.
(NYSE: SFE).  The financing is comprised of $35M equity
investment and $10M venture debt.  Participating venture
capital organizations include: Safeguard Scientifics, Delphi
Ventures, The Carlyle Group, Longitude Capital, and Stark
Investments.  Horizon
Technology Finance (Nasdaq:
HRZN) provided the venture debt funding.

PixelOptics’ core product emPower!™ was recently launched
on March 18th during the International Vision Expo East in New York
City.  emPower! is the world’s first and only electronic
focusing eyeglasses: www.emPowerEyeWear.com.
 Capable of being fabricated in all prescriptions, emPower!
will be available in numerous high fashion styles, shapes, sizes
and colors beginning this spring.  emPower! changes optical
power focus faster than the blink of an eye without moving parts
and without making a sound.  These high-tech eyeglasses are
waterproof and shock resistant and have three modes of operation:
manual on, manual off, and fully automatic.

Ron Blum,
O.D., Pixel’s President and CEO said, “We are extremely pleased
to have successfully closed on this new capital.  We also feel
very humbled and fortunate to have forged such a very strong and
credible financial syndicate led by a quality company such as
Safeguard Scientifics. This will now allow us to grow Pixel
properly as well as provide the company with the needed capital to
support an ambitious launch for

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