Transmit Security Raises $543M Series A Round To Eliminate The Password

Israeli cybersecurity startup Transmit Security announced on Tuesday that it raised $543 million in a Series A funding round at a pre-money valuation of $2.2 billion. This one of the largest Series A financing ever for a cybersecurity company.

The funding round was led by Insight Partners and General Atlantic, with additional investment from Cyberstarts, Geodesic, SYN Ventures, Vintage, and Artisanal Ventures.

Founded in 2014 by Mickey Boodaei and Rakesh Loonkar, Transmit Security creates what it calls “identity experiences” for customers and workforces across channels. The company’s solutions, which include an app-less biometric authenticator, ensure an effortless and passwordless experience, reducing all forms of identity attrition and saving costs for enterprises.

Transmit employs 100 people with headquarters in Tel Aviv and additional offices in Boston, London, Berlin, Tokyo, Hong Kong, Madrid, Sao Paulo, and Mexico City.

Transmit Security said it will use the funding to increase the company’s reach and expand its primary business functions, investing in key global areas in order to grow the organization.

The World Economic Forum has reported that some 80 percent of cyber attacks are related to passwords. Cybercrime, the international NGO reports, is set to cost the global economy $2.9 million every minute in 2020.

Transmit Security created BindID, a customer authentication service that is completely password-free, for this reason. BindID requires no customer software or dedicated hardware and can be used across any channel or device. Customers can authenticate and access their accounts using the embedded fingerprint or face scanner in their devices, or use their mobile device to securely authenticate to other devices and channels that don’t have an embedded biometric reader.

“Passwordless authentication is so much more than ensuring customers can easily and seamlessly access their information, their accounts, and make purchases – it’s about revolutionizing the way companies interact with their customers,” said Boodaei, who serves as Transmit Security CEO.

“Our customers, whether they are in the retail, banking, financial, telecommunications or automotive sectors, understand that providing an optimized identity experience is a multimillion-dollar challenge. With this latest round of funding from premier partners, we can significantly expand our reach to help rid the world of passwords,” he added.

“Transmit Security is offering application owners a new reality: The ability to go passwordless no matter the size of their organization or number of users. The fact that we have raised a record amount of funding is a clear indication that the world is ready to eliminate passwords and embrace biometric authentication technology so that they can deliver enhanced user experiences combined with significantly heightened levels of security,” said Loonkar, who serves as Transmit Security president.

“We have been watching the growth of Transmit Security for some time and are deeply impressed by the leadership and passion Mickey and Rakesh have demonstrated as they take identity management to a new level,” said Matt Gatto, managing director at Insight Partners. “Their groundbreaking technology, entrepreneurial spirit and deep expertise is precisely what this industry needs at this moment. We are thrilled to welcome the Transmit Security team to the Insight family as we focus our investments on creating a passwordless world.”