Cybersecurity software firm Enclave Networks has closed a £740,000 funding round led by existing investor, Next Big Thing and US-based cyber investor, Gula Tech Adventures (GTA).
The investment will support the Newport-based firm as it looks to expand into new markets, including the USA, and develop its international client base.
The deal will also allow the business to add to its team and invest in new roles to support its go to market strategy.
Chief executive David Notley said: “Network infrastructure has become increasingly complex and diverse, with the result that all too often it can be a blocker to organisational agility rather than the enabler it can be with Enclave.”
Berlin-based Next Big Thing (NBT), a venture studio for the machine economy, first invested in the Welsh firm in March 2020.
The studio said it will work closely with Enclave’s senior management team to support global sales as it looks to scale up to international cybersecurity markets.
Ron Gula, founder of venture capital firm Gula Tech Adventures, said: “We are excited to partner with Enclave to build the next generation of secure computer networks. Enclave is a great fit for our "secure by design" portfolio. The networking market is ripe for disruption through easy to deploy zero trust solutions.”
The investment comes as businesses continue to grapple with cybersecurity concerns around remote home working and managing multi-cloud environments.
In 2021, four in ten businesses (39%) identified breaches or attacks on their networks, according to the Government's Cyber Security Breach Survey.
Mr Notley said: "We are looking forward to working with Next Big Thing, Gula Tech Adventures and our other partners to offer more companies the opportunity to protect their networks against the ever-growing threat of cyber attacks and the disastrous consequences such breaches can bring.
He added: “Our mission is to help organisations radically simplify their network management by turning their networks into enablers rather than blockers."
Enclave is a zero trust software-as-a-service (SaaS) product, a software licencing and delivery model where software is licenced on a subscription basis.
It makes connectivity within businesses and their supply chains simpler and more secure by ensuring connecting systems are invisible to unauthorised third parties, as opposed to VPN server solutions.
