This startup hopes to improve your loading problems, faster than you can read this headline

Australian tech startup Squixa has released the second version of its cloud-based website acceleration platform, having recently completed a funding round.

Squixa’s cloud-based SaaS (software as a service) web acceleration platform reduces the size of web pages, optimises page code, and manages content delivery for a flat monthly fee per host.

Websites on the platform are served from 168 locations globally through content delivery networks run by Amazon, EdgeCast, OnApp and Highwinds. This means websites are always served from a location close to the end user.

The company claims to have attracted 70 high-profile customers, including NRMA, nib, Lorna Jane and Temple & Webster.

Squixa chief executive Stewart McGrath told StartupSmart the latest version of the software adds some important new features.

“We’ve been in business two-and-a-half years, and in that time we’ve been focusing on adding features and capabilities that weren’t in version one. For customers, that means faster websites and more flexibility to achieve their goals.

“It’s a major advancement. The underpinning structure has been shuffled around. We’ve added new modules, including support for Varnish web servers and LUA scripting capabilities, which is something tech folks will be excited about.”

McGrath says another growth opportunity, with Google punishing the search rankings of websites that don’t use SSL, is that all content served from Squixa’s platform is automatically served with SSL.

“We can help any customer move to SSL, giving them an instant SEO boost,” McGrath says.

“We’ve grown and bought on new tech people, but kept the same mantra of doing everything to simplify the lives of website owners. Being a website owner is a challenge for a myriad of reasons, including conflicting options and demands for content and speed.”

Squixa was originally founded in 2012 by McGrath and fellow former GraysOnline executive Daniel Bartholomew. In July of last year, StartupSmart reported it was pursuing a funding round.

“We closed another small round of funding since then. Existing investors who saw the promise came back in, and we added new investors too.”

McGrath says while international expansion is in the pipeline, there are still large opportunities to be had in the Australian market.

“The Australian market is an interesting space. There are a lot of Australian websites that can use a little help, especially with a competitive international market.

“There are some Australian sites serving Australian customers, some Australian sites serving international customers, and some overseas sites being run from Australia.”