Japanese investment giant SoftBank is committing tens of millions of dollars to the Israeli cyber unicorn Wiz, Calcalist reported on Wednesday.
This strategic investment aligns with Wiz's ambitions to penetrate the Asian market. As of July, Wiz's annual revenue rate stands at approximately $500 million, with projections estimating it will reach $1 billion by 2025. In May, the company raised $1 billion, valuing it at $12 billion.
SoftBank's investment preceded a $23 billion acquisition offer from Google, which was declined by Wiz's co-founder and CEO Assaf Rappaport, who opted to continue nurturing the company's growth rather than accept the colossal offer.
SoftBank's investment coincides with forecasts of significant increases in cloud expenditure in Asia, projected to reach $153.6 billion by 2026, according to IDC. This positions Asia as a strategic growth target for Wiz's global expansion. Collaboration with SoftBank is expected to establish Wiz as a pivotal player in cloud security across the continent. Currently, Wiz is engaging in substantial recruitment efforts in the region and investing in building robust sales structures.
Founded in 2020 by CEO Rappaport, Roy Reznik (VP of Research and Development), Ami Luttwak (Chief Technology Officer) and Yinon Costica (VP of Products), the team has a track record of over 15 years of collaboration, notably as managers of Microsoft's cloud security group, which acquired their previous venture Adallom for $320 million.
To date, Wiz has raised a total of $1.9 billion, with investors including American investment fund Andreessen Horowitz, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Thrive Capital, Greylock and Wellington Management. The company employs over 1,200 people, primarily in the U.S. (New York, Washington, Austin, Texas, Denver and California), with others located in Tel Aviv, Europe and Asia. Wiz is currently hiring for hundreds of open positions, including dozens in Israel, and serves approximately 40% of the Fortune 100 companies.
A recent study by Economist Impact indicates that cloud services are the fastest-growing and most dominant technology in Asia, with 85% of executives reporting their organizations already utilize the cloud. Amid this growth, Wiz plans to double its workforce on the continent by the end of the year. In recent months, Wiz has recruited dozens of employees in Japan, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand, and has established a new data center in Sydney.