Market move: Leesburg-based Quantum Computing, Inc. is now traded on the Nasdaq

As of Thursday, Leesburg, Virginia-based quantum software company Quantum Computing Inc is trading publicly on the Nasdaq.

Quantum Computing made its debut on the prominent stock exchange Thursday, trading under the symbol QUBT. The company was already publicly traded. With this move, it transitioned to the Nasdaq Capital Market from the OTCQB, the mid-tier OTC — or “over the counter” — marketplace for companies in their early stages.

The software company is known for its flagship Qatalyst product, which uses APIs and cloud-based software to combine classic and quantum computing techniques for optimization. It’s designed to make quantum computing techniques, which tap into the laws of physics for faster and more efficient problem-solving by computers, available to businesses. Think of the race to bring quantum computing to wide adoption, and typically it’s focused on building new computer hardware. In this case, the company builds software that taps quantum resources.

With the public market move, it is looking to grow its position.

“Trading on the Nasdaq represents a significant achievement for the company as recognition as a serious player in the emerging quantum computing market,” CEO Robert Liscouski told Technical.ly in an email. “The Nasdaq has been long recognized as an exchange that attracts innovative growth companies in which institutional and retail investors can invest to fuel growth and build shareholder value.”

Liscouski added that trading on the Nasdaq compared to the OTCQB opens up additional opportunities for capital for Quantum Computing. He said that many funds are hampered by the restrictions of the OTCQB, and the move upwards will boost access to “institutional investors and funds by a factor of 100 or 1000.”

According to its end-of-year SEC filing, Quantum Computing reported a $53.5 million deficit in 2021, although it had $13.5 million in total stockholder equity in March of this year. But Liscouski said that this move to the Nasdaq signals strong growth for the overall quantum software industry. He said that the global marketplace is worth $320 million, and, according to Quantum Economic Development Consortium and Hyperion Research projections, it will grow at a compound annual growth rate of 27% between 2020 and 2024. At the end of that period, the market is expected to be worth $830 million, and he anticipated Quantum Computing, Inc. to grow with it.

“There is no question that there is a significant public market opportunity for quantum computing and the industry will grow significantly in the next several years,” Liscouski said.