Microsoft’s M12, Viola Ventures Invest In Israeli Fintech Cyber Startup nsKnox

Israeli cybersecurity startup nsKnox announced the completion of a $15 million Series A funding round led by Viola Ventures and M12, Microsoft’s venture fund, with the participation of Discount Capital, the investment arm of Israel Discount Bank, and previous seed investors.

Founded in 2016 by Alon Cohen, the founder, former chairman, and CEO of CyberArk, nsKnox focuses on fintech and cybersecurity (FinSec), offering protection of corporate payment systems against insider threats, cyber-fraud, and data manipulation. The startup, based in Boston and Tel Aviv, developed the Cooperative Cyber Security (CCS) platform, combining the strength of multiple cybersecurity systems from several organizations to secure both outbound and inbound payments from fraud.

The technology “allows organizations to validate payment authenticity, verify sender and receiver, and identify and prevent manipulations – safeguarding the payment process seamlessly across every point of transaction, including enterprise, bank, and supplier,” nsKnox said in a company statement.

“Businesses are so focused on protecting their data and the identity of their users that they are not doing enough to protect the very lifeblood of their organization — their money,” said nsKnox CEO Nir Tenzer. “nsKnox is bringing corporate payment protection into the digital age, arming companies in the battle against payment fraud, manipulation and cybercrime.”

Cohen said the startup is “committed to creating an impenetrable line of defense against corporate payment fraud.”

“This financing round is a tremendous milestone, helping us realize our vision of protecting corporate payments with our entirely new Cooperative Cyber Security paradigm. The bad guys are working together – so should the good guys. That’s what nsKnox is all about,” he added.

The funding will help nsKnox expand its global customer base and further develop its platform, the company said.