New York Stock Exchange-listed cybersecurity firm SentinelOne has finalized a deal to acquire Bengaluru-based startup PingSafe for a valuation exceeding $100 million, making it the largest acquisition in India’s cybersecurity startup sector to date.
The acquisition, as reported by TechCrunch, places PingSafe, backed by Peak XV Partners, under the umbrella of SentinelOne in a cash-and-stock transaction. While the financial details were initially undisclosed, Barclays’ report confirms a combination of stock and cash components.
PingSafe, founded in 2020 by Anand Prakash and Nishant Mittal, has rapidly become a prominent player in the cybersecurity domain. The startup caters to a diverse clientele, including industry giants like Flipkart, Razorpay, Near Intelligence Inc. (Nasdaq-listed), Skyflow, Belvilla, and Recko (a Stripe Company). The acquisition is poised to position PingSafe as a key player in the cloud security space, with a focus on the US market.
PingSafe’s platform, led by the vision of Anand Prakash, offers a centralized dashboard providing real-time proof of exploitability. The system achieves this by deploying harmless payloads to hack customers’ infrastructure, instantly identifying vulnerabilities. By aggregating intelligence through cloud APIs and logs, PingSafe bridges the gap between attackers’ methods and existing security solutions in the market.
PingSafe Founder’s Journey:
Anand Prakash, the 30-year-old co-founder of PingSafe, hails from an agricultural family in Bain village, Churu district, Rajasthan. Despite his humble background, Prakash emerged as a trailblazer in cybersecurity. His journey began as a cyber security intern with Haryana Police, followed by a stint as a security engineer at Flipkart. Co-founding the cybersecurity firm AppSecure with his brother, Prakash established himself as a top white hat hacker, conducting bug bounty programs for major companies like Meta, Uber, Twitter, Tinder, and Salesforce.
SentinelOne sees this acquisition as a strategic move to bolster its AI security platform, protecting enterprises across endpoints, identities, and clouds. With nearly 12,000 customers already on board, the acquisition enables SentinelOne to expand its reach and capabilities significantly.
The deal, anticipated to conclude in the first quarter of the 2025 financial year, positions PingSafe to create a new wave of dollar millionaires. Anand Prakash expressed his initial reluctance to sell but emphasized the scale and game-changing potential of SentinelOne’s AI security platform. The infusion of resources from this acquisition is expected to accelerate PingSafe’s expansion plans, particularly in the competitive US market.