Nanoco, based in Runcorn, makes cadmium-free quantum dots, tiny crystals that emit or absorb light, for infrared image sensors and displays. A patent win against Samsung paid it about £118m in net proceeds and funded a £33m return to shareholders, but the commercial business never took off as hoped. It now has about £9m of cash and costs of £0.3m–£0.4m a month. The shares were 2.7p at the latest close on 12 October 2026, against 21.6p in January 2024.
Quantum dots for cameras and screens
Nanoco makes nanomaterials, particles of 1–100 nanometres. Its main products are quantum dots, whose optical properties depend on their size. The cadmium-free dots (CFQD) emit light for displays. The HEATWAVE dots absorb near-infrared light, so they suit cameras and image sensors. Its customers are chemical and electronics companies in Asia and Europe, and its focus is image sensors. The company was founded in 2001 and is listed on the London Stock Exchange main market.
It earns money in three ways: licence fees for its patents, paid development work, and material sales. In the year to July 2025, revenue was £7.6m. Licences brought £6.3m, services £1.2m and material sales just £0.1m. Services come mainly from joint development agreements (JDAs). In these, a customer pays Nanoco to tune a material for its product before any production order. 20 Apr 2026 18 Nov 2025 15 Nov 2023
The Samsung money and the first orders
Nanoco won its patent case against Samsung. The proceeds were $90m net, in two tranches: £59.2m in March 2023, mostly used for litigation costs, and £58.8m in January 2024. The company then returned £33m to shareholders: a £30m tender offer at 24p, completed in April 2024, and a £3m buyback, finished in October 2024.
The operating business moved forward too. In November 2023 it shipped its first commercial orders, for two infrared sensing materials. It also signed two-year JDAs with an Asian chemical company and with STMicroelectronics. It said it would reach cash breakeven during calendar 2025. 17 Oct 2023 24 Jan 2024 11 Mar 2024 11 Apr 2024 30 Oct 2024 15 Nov 2023 7 Nov 2023 12 Jan 2024 27 Mar 2024
The European customer walks away
In July 2024 Nanoco said production orders were delayed. On 30 August 2024 a European customer ended its orders for the first-generation sensing materials and terminated the second-generation development agreement. Management then expected FY25 revenue about 25% below consensus. The shares fell from 14.9p at the end of July to 9.2p at the end of August. Later management said this customer was moving away from quantum dot sensor technology.
The board reacted fast. In October 2024 it began a review. It hired CDX Advisors to look for a buyer for the trading business and announced cuts of £2.6m a year (34%). Dmitry Shashkov replaced Brian Tenner as chief executive. The activist shareholder Milkwood requisitioned a general meeting, arguing for asset sales and surplus cash to be returned. Jalal Bagherli became chairman in January 2025. 2 Jul 2024 30 Aug 2024 3 Oct 2024 22 Oct 2024 28 Oct 2024 21 Jan 2025 20 Nov 2024 18 Nov 2025
Patent fights and a sale that never came
Management signed a second Asian chemical customer in April 2025 and widened its pipeline. It also sued LG Electronics in the US. LG settled in November 2025 for $5m gross, and $4.5m arrived in January 2026. A few days later Shoei Chemical sought a ruling that it did not infringe Nanoco's patents. Nanoco counterclaimed, then settled in March 2026 with no money either way. Each side promised not to sue the other for three years in its own field: Nanoco in display, Shoei in sensing. Nanoco paid £3.2m in legal costs linked to the Shoei case.
In January 2026 the company ended the CDX sale process. It said no firm offers had arrived. It chose to invest in its own prospects and cut costs further. 28 Apr 2025 25 Apr 2025 20 Nov 2025 15 Jan 2026 27 Nov 2025 12 Jan 2026 19 Mar 2026 26 Mar 2026 26 Jan 2026 20 Apr 2026
What explains the record
Two things stand out. First, Nanoco depends on a few customers, and development work is slow. Services revenue came mainly from two JDAs. One customer's exit in 2024 broke the plan for 2025 breakeven. Second, patents have paid more than products. Samsung and LG settlements funded the company and its payouts. The materials business has not yet covered its costs. Revenue excluding licence agreements was only £1.5m in FY26. 30 Aug 2024 18 Nov 2025 19 Aug 2026
Cuts, turnover and a rejected delisting
Management has shrunk the company. Gross cash costs fell from £0.7m a month in mid-2024 to £0.5m, and to £0.3m–£0.4m in 2026. The board is down to three directors. Mr Shashkov left in February 2026, and so did the co-founder and CTO Nigel Pickett. CFO Liam Gray became interim chief executive. At the January 2026 AGM, two resolutions on share issuance failed and five others received only about 74–75% support.
On 27 May 2026 the board proposed delisting and becoming a private company, to save about £0.7m a year. The shares fell from 4.9p at the end of April to 2.9p at the end of May. After shareholders raised liquidity concerns, the board adjourned the vote, set for 19 June, indefinitely. It then hired Sodali & Co for a shareholder consultation and brought Mr Bagherli back as non-executive chairman. The company has not said what it will do next. 26 Jan 2026 20 Apr 2026 27 May 2026 18 Jun 2026 19 Jun 2026 25 Jun 2026 26 Jun 2026
One-off income, small base
On 19 August 2026 Nanoco reported FY26 revenue of £11.3m, in line with forecasts, and underlying adjusted EBITDA of £6.1m, ahead of forecasts. The LG settlement drove both figures. Year-end cash was £9.3m, down from £14.0m a year earlier. Final results are due later in 2026.
Annual gross cash costs are expected to be about £4.2m from August 2026, down from £6.0m in 2025. 19 Aug 2026 20 Apr 2026 18 Nov 2025
A smaller company waiting on one customer
Nanoco's breakeven goal has slipped. In March 2024 it said it would reach cash breakeven during calendar 2025. By April 2025 that had become 'the medium term'. In November 2025 the chairman said breakeven in calendar 2027. The April 2026 report went back to 'medium term'.
The production timetable has also moved. In November 2023 the plan was industrial-scale production in 2026 and 2027. The November 2025 JDA extension points to production orders in 2028. In August 2026 management expected volumes from the first Asian customer to more than double in FY27 from a small base. In April 2026 it also said it was discussing a further JDA with its second Asian customer. Open questions: whether the first customer picks Nanoco's material for scale-up, whether other JDAs lead to orders, and whether the delisting proposal returns. 27 Mar 2024 15 Apr 2025 18 Nov 2025 20 Apr 2026 7 Nov 2023 4 Nov 2025 19 Aug 2026
“If successful, the customer anticipates production level orders will be rolled out in 2028.” 4 Nov 2025
Written by AI from Nanoco Group's own announcements since Oct 2023 · every paragraph links to its sources