Cato Networks Secures $359M in Series G Funding, Boosting Cybersecurity Sector

Cato Networks Lands $359M As Cybersecurity Funding Holds Strong

Tel Aviv-based cloud security provider Cato Networks announced Monday that it raised $359 million in Series G funding at a valuation of more than $4.8 billion. Investors in the round include Vitruvian Partners and Ion Crossover Partners, joined by existing backers Lightspeed Venture Partners, Acrew Capital and Adams Street Partners.The new financing brings total funding to date for the 10-year-old company to over $1 billion. The fundraise comes amid a comparatively upbeat period for cybersecurity funding. So far this year, investors have poured just over $7 billion into global startups in the space, per Crunchbase data. Investment rose sequentially in Q1 of this year, as well as Q2, which winds to a close today. Besides Cato, other mega-round recipients include AI-powered data security platform Cyera, which raised $540 million earlier this month, and endpoint security provider NinjaOne, which landed $500 million in February. Cato is focused on SASE, or secure access service edge, a networking and security category that provides a single cloud-based network to connect and secure physical, cloud or mobile enterprise resources. Among the touted benefits of SASE is that it helps enable secure remote work. That's been a high-demand capability given that enterprises today rely heavily on remote and hybrid workforces. And with the exception of some high-profile return-to-office mandates, that's not likely to change in the foreseeable future. Looking forward, Cato said it plans to use the latest funding to expand capabilities enabling customers to securely adopt AI, increase its R&D spending, and grow its global footprint. The financing also comes amid a growth period for "ultra-unicorns," or private companies valued at $5 billion or more. Per Crunchbase data, at least 17 companies joined this cohort in just the first half of 2025 -- including high-profile players such as Thinking Machines Lab, Glean and Abridge. While Cato hasn't quite crossed the $5 billion threshold -- it's really, really close.

Cato Networks raises $359M in funding for its SASE platform - SiliconANGLE

Cato Networks Ltd., a fast-growing networking and cybersecurity startup, today announced that it has closed a $359 million late-stage investment. The Series G funding round was led by Vitruvian Partners and ION Crossover Partners with participation from multiple returning backers. Tel Aviv-based Cato is now worth $4.8 billion. The cash infusion comes four months after the company disclosed that its annual recurring revenue has topped $250 million, a 150% increase from November 2022. Cato provides a SASE, or secure access service edge, platform that is used by more than 3,500 organizations. The platform provides cloud-based network infrastructure that companies can use to connect remote locations such as offices, data centers and factories. Additionally, Cato offers features for securing the data traffic that flows between those locations. The platform can block connections between parts of a company's infrastructure that don't require the ability to exchange information. That makes it more difficult for malware to spread across the corporate network. The traffic that isn't blocked, in turn, is scanned for threats using artificial intelligence models built into Cato's platform. One of the cybersecurity challenges that the company promises to ease for users is detecting so-called polymorphic malware. Such malware can automatically change its own code, which makes it more difficult to spot. Changing a file's code modifies its signature, a kind of unique identifier that cybersecurity tools use to detect malicious activity. According to Cato, its platform can not only spot malware already inside a corporate network but also prevent hackers from gaining access in the first place. One of the tools built into the platform blocks malicious websites that might compromise employee devices. If a user wishes to access a webpage that isn't blocked but could still pose risks, Cato opens the webpage in a cloud-based container. It then sends a rendering of the page to the user's browser instead of the original, potentially malicious code. The platform is powered by a software engine called SPACE that runs on bare-metal servers deployed around the world. Those servers are connected to multiple internet providers' networks, which Cato uses to process customers' data traffic. If one component of the company's infrastructure goes offline, it can automatically reroute requests to another system.