Seattle-based cybersecurity company F5 Inc. (Nasdaq: FFIV) has named Samir Sherif as its new chief information security officer.
Sherif spent almost 22 years at Citigroup earlier in his career, according to his LinkedIn page. F5, which announced the hire Monday, said he is replacing Gail Coury, who is retiring at the beginning of March.
"(Sherif's) vast experience and leadership in application security are assets that will propel our enterprise security measures and help us safeguard our customers’ digital experiences,” F5 Chief Strategy Officer Tom Fountain said in a news release.
Sherif's most recent role at Citi was global head of application security. Prior to his more than two decades at the financial services company, he spent close to six years at GE Capital. His most recent role before joining F5 was CISO of the cybersecurity company Absolute Software. He held the role for just over a year, according to his LinkedIn page.
At F5, Sherif will oversee cybersecurity strategy, standards and programs, the company said.
Coury has worked at F5 for more than five years, including the last three years as CISO. She spent more than 13 years at Oracle before joining F5, according to her LinkedIn page.
F5 was founded in 1996 and went public in 1999. The company focuses on app protection, fraud prevention, network performance and app delivery. F5 began with a focus on helping clients smoothly run their websites, but the company has moved further into the app and cloud spaces over the years. The company rebranded in 2021 and dropped "Networks" from its name.
F5's clients include Puma and Shawbrook Bank. The company reported $2.8 billion in revenue in its 2023 fiscal year results, released in October, up from $2.7 billion the year before. F5 generated $707 million in revenue during its fiscal fourth quarter of 2023, up from $700 million during the same period in 2022.
In November, F5 laid off 120 of its roughly 6,400 employees, adding to layoffs to 623 workers in April. Former Sprint CEO Michel Combes rejoined F5's board in October. He had previously served on the board from 2018 to 2021.
