By Ateev Bhandari
(Reuters) – Island, an enterprise browser and cybersecurity startup, said on Wednesday its latest funding round valued it at $4.8 billion, marking a 60% jump in less than a year, underscoring the rush by companies worldwide to strengthen their security protocols.
The $250 million series E round, led by Coatue Management, took the total funding for the company to $730 million. Venture capital firms Cyberstarts, Sequoia, Insight Partners and Georgian — the startup’s existing investors — also joined the round.
Island Co-founder and CEO Mike Fey told Reuters that the company currently has more than $530 million in cash.
Launched in 2022, Island helps enterprises replace their existing suite of applications with a single, security-focused browser that comes built-in with all tools.
Cybersecurity has become more crucial than ever as a rapid digital transformation across industries has increased the risk of online attacks and hacks, prompting businesses to spend more on safeguarding their domains.
Disruptions caused by the global CrowdStrike outage last year have also encouraged some companies to boost their budgets on protecting digital assets.
Last week, Google-parent Alphabet announced a $32 billion acquisition of cybersecurity startup Wiz, in its biggest deal ever.
Total funding to VC-backed cybersecurity startups hit nearly $11.6 billion last year, up 43% over 2023, Crunchbase data showed.
Island counts seven of the 10 largest U.S. banks among its customers, Fey said.
The company’s last fundraising in April 2024, which valued it $3 billion, was also led by Coatue, along with Sequoia Capital.
“Coatue invests heavily in public markets. We like them because we expect to be in a partnership with them, not just (in the) private but in the public space,” Fey said.
Fey and Dan Amiga, another co-founder and chief technology officer, are enterprise security veterans, with past executive roles at McAfee and Symantec Corp, respectively, according to their LinkedIn profiles.
(Reporting by Ateev Bhandari in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)
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