Ex‐Israel Defense execs’ firm raises $30m in series B money

Israel-based Cylus, a firm that provides cybersecurity to railway companies, has raised US$30 million in a series B financing round led by Ibex Investors, with participation from Vertex Growth Fund and Strides International Business, among others.

Photo credit: Cylus

CylusOne, the Tel Aviv-based company’s flagship product, offers cybersecurity services for the railway industry, enabling real-time threat detection, advanced forensics and mitigation, and simplified security operations.

The startup was founded in 2017 by Miki Shifman and Amir Levintal, both of whom have previously served in the Israel Defense Forces. They specialize in cybersecurity, machine learning, traffic management, signaling, and onboarding train systems.

Cylus will use the fresh funds to fuel its growth in North America, as well as across Europe and the Asia Pacific.

The fresh investment comes against the backdrop of an jump in the number of cyber attacks on railways and a growing demand for security solutions. The market size of the global railway cybersecurity industry is poised to hit U$10.2 billion by 2027.

The latest round brings the company’s total funding to over US$57 million.

As part of the deal, William Heinrich, former chief information security officer of Amtrak and BNSF Railway, and Mark Grant, former chief information security officer of CSX Transportation, will join Cylus’ advisory board.

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Other investors in this round include:

• Magma Venture Partners
• Vertex Ventures Israel
• Zohar Zisapel, member of Cylus’ board, and Glenrock Israel