French cyber gem Filigran raises 15 million euros 

Open-source cyber defense solutions specialist is provider for Thales, European Commission, ANSSI, and preferred partner of FBI.

On February 29, 2024, the French cybersecurity startup and open source solution specialist, Filigran, announced a 15-million-euro series A fundraising round. The latter comes after an initial 5-million-euro seed round, only six months ago. A leading US fund, Accel, led the new round, alongside the startup’s two original investors, Moonfire and Motier Ventures. 

Created in Paris in 2022 by Samuel Hassine and Julien Richard, Filigran gained notoriety with OpenCTI, an open source threat-mapping solution. The startup now also offers an attack simulation tool, OpenBAS, and a risk management platform, OpenERM.

The startup doubled its staff in six months, going from 21 to 40 employees. It now has 4,200 public and private sector customers, including a number of big accounts. On the private side, Marriott, Thales and Hermes use Filigran solutions. On the public side, the startup is a provider for the European Commission, ENISA, ANSSI and the French Ministry of Home Affairs.

Yet the FBI remains Filigran’s key partner. “The FBI is a firm believer […] in our action plan, to the extent they are [Filigran’s] ambassador. They spread the good word, partner with and contribute to the solution. Between 3,000 and 4,000 agents specialized in combating cybercrime use our solution to make arrests,” claims Samuel Hassine.

The funds raised should allow Filigran to hire thirty or so employees by the end of 2024, and contribute to the impending launch of two subsidiaries, one in the United States and one in Australia. “Teams will be rolled out to grow new partnerships, and take care of technical presale and customer support,” explains Samuel Hassine.

The fundraising round will also allow Filigran to speed up the growth and launch of two new security products. The startup is aiming for 40 million euros in sales between 2026 and 2027.