The acquisition represents the first exit from Elkstone Venture Fund I, two years after its initial investment.
Dublin-based Mesh Security is being acquired by Romanian cybersecurity firm Bitdefender for an undisclosed sum.
The Elkstone-backed Mesh claims to be the first email security platform built exclusively for managed service providers – third-party companies that provide IT services to other businesses.
Founded in 2020 by Brian Byrne, Ralph Casey and Daimhim Kavanagh, the Irish start-up helps protect from business email compromise, ransomware and spear-phishing attacks.
According to the company, it provides dual-layered security to its more than 4,000 customers spread across Ireland, the UK and US. This includes perimeter protection through a secure email gateway and mailbox-level defence through API deployment.
With the acquisition, Bitdefender plans to integrate Mesh’s offerings into its unified security, compliance and risk analytics platform.
Bitdefender’s more than 41,000-strong clientele are set to benefit from the Irish company’s centralised email-security platform and round-the-clock protection, while lowering operational costs through automatic policy enforcement and real-time threat updates, the two said.
“With Bitdefender by our side, we are excited to enhance protection for even more organisations together,” said CEO Byrne.
Mesh raised €1.55m in a seed funding round in 2023 led by Elkstone, with backing from Enterprise Ireland. The raise was part of Elkstone’s Venture Fund I, Ireland’s largest early-stage venture fund, which launched back in 2022.
With the infusion, Mesh announced that it would be creating 40 new jobs over the coming four years. The acquisition will not disrupt Mesh’s existing team, who will remain in place and retain their positions, the company said.
According to the Business Post, Mesh currently has 18 employees and plans to double its headcount within the next 18 months.
Moreover, the acquisition also represents the first exit from Elkstone’s Venture Fund I, highlighting the effectiveness of early-stage venture capital in scaling Irish tech companies to the global stage, involved parties said.
“We are incredibly grateful to Elkstone for their unwavering support, which has been integral to our journey,” said Byrne.
Niall McEvoy, the managing director of venture at Elkstone, said: “We are proud to have backed the Mesh team through their rapid growth journey, driven by the experience of founders Brian, Ralph and Daimhin.
“It’s also a significant moment for Elkstone two years after our initial investment. It serves as a shining example of the success of Irish ventures on the global stage.”
Don’t miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.
