Sheffield-based cybersecurity startup Sitehop has raised £5m to develop encryption tools for complex communication networks.
Founded in 2021, Sitehop aims to address the problem of cybersecurity encryption slowing down communications networks.
The company offers hardware-enforced encryption via its flagship product, SAFEblade 1100. Sitehop said it can support over 4,000 secure tunnels at once with encryption or decryption latency of “less than 900 nanoseconds”.
Sitehop CEO Melissa Chambers said the new investment would support the company’s international expansion, with plans for hiring in Brazil, the US and India as well as its Yorkshire headquarters.
“The investment will also enable Sitehop to pursue its technology roadmap – fleshing out the range of SAFE products securing all types of data-in-motion and developing parallel products using our world-class skillsets in cryptography and programmable hardware design,” Chambers added.
The investment round was led by Amadeus Capital Partners and Manta Ray Ventures, with additional participation from Mercia Ventures, the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund and a number of angel investors.
“Sitehop is bringing a novel hardware-based approach to a fundamental challenge facing the providers of the essential network infrastructure underpinning our digital society,” said Nick Kingsbury, partner at Amadeus Capital Partners.
“The flexibility and scalability of Sitehop’s data encryption technology makes it accessible to SMEs as well as large enterprises, meaning there need be no weak link in our defence against cyber criminality.”
Last year, Sitehop raised £1m from the Mercia-managed Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund.