Cybersecurity software created in Porto attracts 7.7 million investment

Portuguese technology company Probely, which operates in the cybersecurity sector and has about 200 customers in sectors such as banking, insurance or telecommunications, spread across 32 countries, has just raised a funding of 7.7 million euros to strengthen the team with 40 people, pursue international expansion and "cement the position" in the United States of America (USA).

This Series A investment round - aimed at startups with the product already developed, a customer base and constant revenue stream - was collidered by Iberis Capital and Semapa Next, had the participation of an international investor specialised in cybersecurity (TIIN Capital) and was accompanied by current investors: Bright Pixel Capital (former Sonae IM), Caixa Capital, Portugal Ventures and EDP Ventures.

"This investment is crucial both for the financial empowerment that will allow us to scale the business in strategic markets, and to benefit from the vast experience of the new investors in key areas for our growth," stresses co-founder and CEO, Nuno Loureiro. According to a press release, by the end of 2023 it plans to more than triple its customer base and hire 40 more employees for various teams, including sales and marketing.

Founded in April 2016 and based at the Science and Technology Park of the University of Porto (UPTEC), Probely has developed a solution that identifies vulnerabilities in websites, web applications and API's (application programming interface) in an automated way. Aimed at developers and companies' cybersecurity teams, the software from the northern startup also claims to support the resolution of these diagnosed weaknesses. Most of the current customers are in the US and the UK.

For the founder and partner of Lisbon-based Iberis Capital, which has 300 million euros of assets under management and a base composed of more than 700 investors, Probely "demonstrates the innovation capacity of Portuguese companies and the talent that exists in the country in the areas of technology and computing". "In just a few years it has exported to over 30 countries, which attests to the quality of its services in such a sensitive and competitive area as cybersecurity," adds João Henriques, leader of this private equity and venture capital fund manager.

"Probely's team has strong technical and product development experience in such a critical area as cybersecurity and has demonstrated the need that DevOps [development and operations] teams have to adopt its solution. We are motivated to [support it] in expanding its European base and growing in the US market," adds Hugo Augusto, CEO of Semapa Next, a venture capital firm focused on Series A and B investment rounds from Portugal to Europe.

The bet on projects in the area of cybersecurity has been in the sights of investors. Just a fortnight ago, Carlos Alberto Silva and Carlos Moreira da Silva, former directors of Sonae, announced the creation of a new venture capital company (33N Ventures) to bet precisely on startups linked to this sector. With 20 million euros already raised, they want to raise a total of 150 million from other investors and, once this level is reached, place ten million in series A and B investment rounds.