Cloud security startup Bitglass raises $45 million to help companies protect their data

Bitglass, a cloud security startup that helps protect corporate data, has raised $45 million in a Series C round from new investor Future Fund, with participation from existing investors NEA, Norwest, and Singtel Innov8, among others.

Founded out of California in 2013, Bitglass is the brainchild of CEO Nat Kausik, a veteran of the IT industry who worked as principal scientist at HP from 1989 until 1997, after which he founded and sold a number of companies to heavyweights such as Cisco. He also authored a book on machine learning way back in 1991.

As more and more companies switch to cloud-based “SaaS” services, employees are able to access company data remotely from any location, so firms no longer own or control many of the conduits through which their information flows — be they servers, apps, devices, or the networks themselves. And this is where Bitglass comes into play, by putting itself between employees’ apps and the servers, ensuring that everything is monitored, encrypted, or redacted as required. The technology essentially allows employees to securely use their own devices on companies’ cloud-based applications, including Google’s G Suite, Microsoft Office 365, Box, and more.

“Cloud and mobile are driving business data beyond the firewall, introducing new security and compliance risks,” said Kausik. “Bitglass uniquely delivers real-time inline data protection in the cloud, at access and on any device. This funding is testimony to our strong position in the market and fiscal health.”

The company nabbed a $10 million funding round shortly after it was founded in 2013, and a year later closed another $25 million round. This latest cash injection takes its total funding to $80 million, and the company says it will use its fresh capital to grow globally, including in the U.S., Asia-Pacific (APAC), and in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) regions.

Companies are thought to be spending around $110 billion each year on cloud services, and this expenditure is growing at a rate of 28 percent, so Bitglass is in the right industry for continued expansion.

“Bitglass has all the ingredients for a lasting independent company — growing market, breakthrough technology, and strong management team,” said Scott Sandell, managing general partner at NEA.