JGKB Photonics Completes Series A Financing

Vancouver, Canada, August 6th, 2002 - JGKB Photonics Inc., an emerging leader of electro optical modulators, announced today the completion of a US $2.16 million (CAD $3.45 million) Series A financing. The financing included new investors Venture Coaches, GrowthWorks managed funds, BDC Venture Capital, and Mr. Ken Levy, Chairman of KLA Tencor in participation with prior investors Greenstone Ventures, The Dow Chemical Company, and individuals including several founders of PMC-Sierra.

"Given the challenging investment climate for the photonics sector achieving this financing is a significant vote of confidence in JGKB Photonics", said Alan Guest, President and CEO. "In addition to the strong team of experienced new investors, we are pleased to receive continued funding from our existing investors. We believe that our Mode Converter platform is a strategic technology that will deliver the market critical requirements of low power, ultra-high bandwidth, and long distance performance.

JGKB Photonics is a unique optical technology company with a focus on the high growth modulator component market. The Mode Converter technology offers significant advantages in terms of performance, power requirements and reliability and represents a fundamentally new approach in fiber optic telecommunications speed. The company reached a major milestone with proof of prototype samples in 2001, and will now aim for the next stage of market acceptance for its first product, the 40Gb/s modulator. Built on well-known Gallium Arsenide (GaAs) technology, the Mode Converter Modulator offers advantages in performance and reliability.

The financing proceeds will be used to continue executing on business and development plans and bring demonstration units to customers.

"JGKB Photonics fits very well in our investment portfolio as we invest in early stage companies that demonstrate a novel technology platform for next generation optical networks", said Claude Haw, Managing Partner of Venture Coaches. "The company's mode converter technology is uniquely positioned to extend bandwidth performance and enable power savings and higher levels of optical modulator integration and functionality."


"BDC Venture Capital invests in growth opportunities in the photonics sector", said Richard Cornwall, Managing Director Telecommunications of BDC Venture Capital. "We are very impressed by JGKB Photonics intellectual property portfolio of issued patents, targeting the modulator component sector which is forecast for extended growth.

About BDC Venture Capital
BDC Venture Capital (http://www.bdc.ca/) is a major venture capital investor in Canada, active at every stage of the company's development cycle from seed through to Initial Public Offering, with a focus on technology based businesses that have high growth potential and that are positioned to become dominant players in their markets. BDC Venture Capital has been involved in venture capital since 1975 and has to date invested in more than 400 different companies. It currently manages more than $350 million in venture capital assets and over 80% of its portfolio is invested in the areas of biotechnology, medical and health related technology, telecommunications, information technology and electronics.

About Greenstone Venture Partners
The Greenstone Venture Partners network of experienced executives working with technology companies and investment groups in the U.S. and overseas creates a unique advantage, allowing them to draw on someone with expertise in virtually every technology field. These individuals include founders and senior executives of such world-class technology firms as Cisco, Electronic Arts, LSI Logic, PMC-Sierra, Rational, and Intel, among others. Collectively, the Greenstone network has created more than $20 billion in shareholder value. More information on Greenstone is available at http://www.greenstonevc.com/

About GrowthWorks
GrowthWorks Ltd. is an established portfolio manager with proven expertise in venture capital investments. As active managers, GrowthWorks seeks out innovative, entrepreneurial companies with high growth potential for investment by its managed funds.

GrowthWorks (www.growthworks.ca) manages several venture capital funds, including the GrowthWorks Access Fund and the Working Opportunity Fund, with a combined total of $500 million in assets. GrowthWorks managed funds have invested in more than 80 companies in British Columbia's emerging sectors, including information technology, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, environment, and film and entertainment.

About Venture Coaches
Venture Coaches is an early-stage investor committed to building the next wave of communications and information technology companies. The Partners have extensive operational knowledge and experience to mentor portfolio companies in technology development, corporate governance and business development. Venture Coaches is headquartered in Ottawa, with investments across Canada. For more information, visit www.venturecoaches.com.

About JGKB Photonics
JGKB Photonics (www.jgkb.com) is a unique optical networking startup with a focus on the high growth modulator component market. The Mode Converter technology developed by JGKB Photonics, advances the state of the art in terms of performance, power requirements and reliability and represents a fundamentally new approach.

The company credits and thanks the National Research Councils Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC/IRAP) and Advanced System Institute with support in addition to the seed funding that accelerated the technology development and fundamental research added Guest. JGKB Photonics is also particularly appreciative of ongoing research at the University of British Columbia (UBC) facilities of Dr. Nick Jaeger, Co-founder of JGKB Photonics and Professor at UBC.