Testing, AppSec, Threat Intel, Work AI

Tricentis, Checkmarx, Recorded Future, Strider Technologies, Zafran Security, Glean

Large software focused PE firms are driving M&A, plus new rounds of funding for threat intelligence and a monster round for GenAI for the Enterprise. Let's go!

Tricentis Seeking a Buyer, Flags $4B Valuation

Milana Vinn of Reuters reports Insight Partners is exploring the sale of Tricentis, a test automation platform, in a deal that could value the company at over $4B. Evercore is running the process.

Tricentis was founded in Vienna in 2007 and grew efficiently, raising only $9M in outside funding till Insight Partners invested $165M in the business in late 2016. This would be a nice and sizable DevOps comp and will help drive smaller deals as PE firms look for liquidity options for their long-in-the-tooth holdings.

The company offers software solutions to automate enterprise software testing. Its platform is reportedly used by more than 2,500 customers, including 埃森哲 , 可口可乐公司 , and Nationwide . Tricentis is profitable and growing in the mid-20s with a topline of about $430M.

Tricentis is one of the few sizable pure-play test automation platforms out there. Private Equity has been active in the space over the last several years. 凯雷投资集团 sold Eggplant to Keysight Technologies in 2020, Vista Equity Partners joined Francisco Partners in backing SmartBear , also in 2020. TPG , Riverwood Capital and IVP have been invested in website and mobile testing platform Sauce Labs since 2019 . Expect some of these to start looking for exits in the near future.

Checkmarx on the Block, Seeks $2.5B

On a related note, Israeli tech-news source CTech by Calcalist reports application security company Checkmarx is evaluating bankers to advise on a potential sale. PE firm Hellman & Friedman acquired Checkmarx in March 2020 from Insight Partners for $1.15B. Insight Partners had bought the firm in 2015 for $100M.

Sandeep Johri ran Tricentis under Insight's ownership for several years before taking over the chief executive role at Checkmarx in February 2023.

Application security has been a healthy source of deals and returns for large PE firms over the last decade. I advised Checkmarx competitor Veracode on its sale to CA Technologies many years ago while at J.P. 摩根 . Veracode was subsequently divested to Thoma Bravo (after CA was acquired by 博通 ) and was most recently acquired by TA in a $2.5B transaction . A less successful story is that of Whitehat Security , which was initially acquired by NTT , an ill fated move that was ultimately reversed through a divestiture to 新思科技 in June 2022 .

Mastercard to Acquire Recorded Future for $2.65B

萬事達卡 has announced it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire global threat intelligence platform Recorded Future for $2.65 billion. The deal is expected to strengthen 萬事達卡 ’s cybersecurity services by integrating Recorded Future 's AI-driven platform into its existing fraud prevention and real-time decisioning tools.

Recorded Future serves over 1,900 clients across 75 countries. It provides real-time threat intelligence that helps organizations mitigate risks. The company will continue to operate as an independent subsidiary of 萬事達卡 , enabling it to maintain its focus on cybersecurity while leveraging 萬事達卡 ’s global reach.

The acquisition is part of 萬事達卡 ’s broader strategy to expand its cybersecurity capabilities and enhance its value-added services (VAS) segment. Recorded Future 's expertise will complement 萬事達卡 's existing efforts in protecting businesses and financial institutions from cyber threats.

The deal marks another nice win for Insight Partners , which acquired Recorded Future in 2019 for $780 million .

State Risk Intelligence Platform Strider Technologies Raises $55M

Strider Technologies , a cyber intelligence platform that focuses on state-sponsored threats, has raised $55 million in Series C funding , led by Pelion Venture Partners . This latest round brings Strider’s total venture funding to $110 million. Existing investors DataTribe , Cyfr Capital , and Valor Equity Partners , participated, along with new investor AVP .

Based in Salt Lake City, Strider Technologies specializes in analyzing open-source intelligence (OSINT) to counter nation-state cyber threats. The company’s platform leverages AI to help businesses and government agencies protect against growing cyberattacks from adversarial nations like China, Russia, and North Korea. The company has more than 180 employees and clients spread across 10 countries.

The funds from this round will be used to accelerate the firm's research and development, particularly in artificial intelligence, and to expand its international presence. Strider Technologies recently opened an office in Tokyo, Japan, one of its fastest-growing markets. The company is also working on a large language model to streamline threat analysis, allowing cyber analysts to focus on higher-level intelligence tasks.

Strider was founded in 2019 by Greg L. and Eric Levesque , along with Chief Data Officer Michael Brown .

Risk Mitigation Platform Zafran Security Raises $40M

Israeli cybersecurity startup Zafran Security has raised $40 million in its latest funding round, led by Sequoia Capital 's growth fund. This is Zafran Security 's second fundraising in six months, following a $30.5 million Seed round in March . Notable participants include 01 Advisors , co-founded by former Facebook and Twitter executives, and David Fischer , former Chief Revenue Officer at Facebook.

Founded in 2022 by Sanaz Yashar , Ben Seri , and Snir Havdala , Zafran Security specializes in a risk and mitigation platform that integrates with existing security controls to assess and mitigate exploitable threats. The founders come with extensive experience in Israel's Unit 8200, which was the subject of recent WSJ article .

Enterprise AI Rocketship Glean Raises $260M, Doubles Valuation

Enterprise AI platform Glean has raised over $260 million in Series E funding , bringing its valuation to $4.6 billion. The funding round was co-led by Altimeter and DST Global with participation from new investors Craft Ventures , Sapphire Ventures , and SoftBank Investment Advisers Vision Fund 2, as well as existing investors Coatue , General Catalyst , and Sequoia Capital .

Founded by former Rubrik co-founder Arvind Jain in 2019, Glean 's platform helps employees access internal data through an AI-powered search engine and assistant. The company has tripled its annual recurring revenue in the past year and is expanding its AI capabilities, introducing new automation features and integrations with Zendesk and Salesforce .

This latest funding brings Glean 's total capital raised to $620M, of which $550M is still on hand.

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