On Tuesday, rising Columbia, Md.-based cybersecurity firm Tenable Network Security announced it had raised a massive, $250 million Series B round of investment led by Insight Venture Partners and Accel Venture Partners. The two venture capital firms are among the most active funders backing the evolving security industry that's experienced explosive growth over the past several years.
Though company executives declined to comment on a valuation following the raise, the astounding investment marks the largest ever received by a cybersecurity firm—surpassing the previous record of $230 million held by VMware acquisition company, AirWatch, as was noted by Reuters based on CB Insights data. In addition, and rather unsurprisingly, the round also makes Tenable the cybersecurity firm who's attracted the largest amount of total funding to date in the greater Washington, D.C. area, eclipsing Endgame Inc's $86 million.
In a statement provided to DC Inno, Tenable Network Security CEO Ron Gula said "the round is a testament to the quality of our products and team. We’re proud to have crossed $100M in annual billings this year and are growing billings and headcount at over 50% a year ... We now have more than 1 million Tenable users and 20,000 customers worldwide. This investment will be used to accelerate product development and further the Company’s global growth, as we strive to build the go-to platform for next-generation security software."
"the round is a testament to the quality of our products and team"
In larger context, the raise is also significant within the region given the growing national influence spurned by Maryland and Virginia's emphatic cyber scene, headlined by brands like Mandiant, acquired by FireEye (FEYE) for $1 billion, and Invincea, which has raised more than $40 million since being founded just five years ago.
Importantly, the new round represents Accel Partners' second investment in Tenable, having also been previously involved in the company's $50 million Series A raise in 2012.
Tenable Network Security has now attracted a whopping $300 million from investors, primarily from prominent venture capitalists that call New York and Silicon Valley home.
“Tenable’s strong adoption across a diverse set of great customers reflects its position as a critical enterprise security platform. Discerning CISOs worldwide increasingly view Tenable products as the central hub for managing and improving their security posture amidst an ever-worsening threat landscape," Ping Li, partner at Accel, said in a statement.
"Improving their security posture amidst an ever-worsening threat landscape"
Background
Founded in 2002, Tenable Network Security specializes in developing software that enables realtime network monitoring to detect hackers and other malicious actors attempting to breach systems thereby mitigating risk and for some, also ensuring compliance. The company's flagship product, SecurityCenter Continuous View, acts as a virtual, cloud-based dashboard to view network activity and to make quick decisions regarding the risk of an attack on both the endpoint and network level. Direct Tenable rivals include Rapid7 Inc (RPD.O) and Qualys Inc (QLYS.O).
Earlier this year, Tenable Network Security was named by The Washington Post as championing one of the best workplaces for employees in the greater Washington, D.C. area. They were joined on the list by a number of other D.C. tech companies, including Contactually, iStrategy Labs and Social Tables.
