• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
TechChanging Face of Security

This Mystery Investor Helped Push Cylance Into the ‘Unicorn’ Club

Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
Robert Hackett
By
Robert Hackett
Robert Hackett
Down Arrow Button Icon
June 30, 2016, 8:28 AM ET
YouTube @ VidCon - Day 1
ANAHEIM, CA - JUNE 23: YouTuber Lilly Singh poses with a unicorn during VidCon at the Anaheim Convention Center on June 23, 2016 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by FilmMagic/FilmMagic for YouTube)FilmMagic for YouTube/Getty Images

Cylance, an anti-virus software startup, garnered $100 million in a Series D round of fundraising earlier this month, catapulting the company into the exalted “unicorn” club of startups valued at $1 billion or more. The company claims to use artificial intelligence and machine learning to block computer-based attacks that target businesses.

On Thursday, the cybersecurity firm told Fortune that it plans to share the identity of a previously unnamed investor that participated in the fundraising round: Citi Ventures, the venture capital arm of Citigroup (C). That deal closed a few days after but as part of the initial fundraise in early June.

The bank joins Blackstone’s Tactical Operations fund and Insight Venture Partners, which led the fundraising round that boosted the company’s private valuation more than threefold in a year. Existing investors Khosla Ventures, DFJ Growth, and KKR also participated in the round.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

“We took a look at fintech companies that go beyond fintech,” said Arvind Purushotham, managing director and co-head of venture capital at Citi Ventures. “Anti-virus is one of largest pieces of the security market and also one of oldest parts, so Cylance is playing in a large area with an opportunity to build a multibillion company in a large market.”

Citi also invests in other cybersecurity companies, including the voice security startup Pindrop Security, endpoint security startup Tanium, and network security firm vArmour. (For more, read this feature on Citi embracing the fintech revolution in the latest issue of Fortune.)

“We felt comfortable the technology was enterprise ready,” he added, “and got excited about the idea of building AI-based anti-virus.”

On a call with Fortune, Cylance CEO Stuart McClure said that the company is cash flow positive, though he plans to “ramp up a little” with the new funding. He said the company has more than 1,000 customers, including 50 of the Fortune 500, as well as 425 employees—with plans to reach 800 in the next year.

With the additional funds, McClure said he intends to boost the company’s sales and marketing domestically and globally, mentioning regions such as Latin America, the Nordic states, Europe and the Middle East, Australia, Japan, and Singapore. He also mentioned the possibility of “opportunistic M&A along the way.”

McClure said he had not felt the pangs of pain that other cybersecurity firms have recently reported in attempting to raise money in the private markets. “I hate to almost speak out loud because I feel like I’ll almost jinx myself, but this fundraising was the easiest fundraising round I’ve ever done,” he said.

For more on cybersecurity funding, watch:

The company competes with traditional anti-virus software firms, including Symantec (SYMC) and his former employer Intel (INTC) Security (née McAfee), where he once served as chief technology officer.

Asked about his opinion on recent vulnerabilities discovered in Symantec’s anti-virus software, McClure . “I never dance on anybody’s grave,” he said. “Quite truthfully, it could happen to anybody.”

Next year, the company plans to release a consumer version of its anti-virus software product, McClure said.

About the Author
Robert Hackett
By Robert Hackett
Instagram iconLinkedIn iconTwitter icon
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Tech

C-SuiteFortune 500 Power Moves
Fortune 500 Power Moves: Which executives gained and lost power this week
By Fortune EditorsJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
SuccessCareer Advice
Jensen Huang tells Stanford students their high expectations may make it hard for them to succeed: ‘I wish upon you ample doses of pain and suffering’
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
powell
BankingFederal Reserve
‘We are Jerome Powell’: Gen Z finds an unlikely meme hero in the Fed chair via AI songs and fan edits
By Eva Roytburg and Nick LichtenbergJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
depa
CommentaryConsulting
Adaptability is the new job security and 4 more future AI trends from EY’s global chief innovation officer
By Joe DepaJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
Former OpenAI CTO and now cofounder and CEO of Thinking Machines Mira Murati
AIMira Murati
Wave of defections from former OpenAI CTO Mira Murati’s $12 billion startup Thinking Machines shows cutthroat struggle for AI talent
By Jeremy Kahn and Sharon GoldmanJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
verma
CommentaryGoogle
Google Meet exec on the knowledge engine hiding in your calendar: meetings become IP
By Awaneesh VermaJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
America’s $38 trillion national debt is so big the nearly $1 trillion interest payment will be larger than Medicare soon
By Shawn TullyJanuary 15, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Politics
The Nobel Prize committee doesn't want Trump getting one, even as a gift—but they treated Obama very differently
By Nick LichtenbergJanuary 16, 2026
22 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Europe
Americans have been quietly plundering Greenland for over 100 years, since a Navy officer chipped fragments off the Cape York iron meteorite
By Paul Bierman and The ConversationJanuary 14, 2026
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Politics
Anthony Scaramucci thinks Trump's 'hard-left' move to cap credit-card fees is because he's 'texting back and forth with Mayor Mamdani'
By Nick Lichtenberg and Eva RoytburgJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Health
The head of marketing at Slate posted on LinkedIn requesting cleaning services as a benefit at her company. The next day, HR answered her call
By Sydney LakeJanuary 15, 2026
2 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Jensen Huang tells Stanford students their high expectations may make it hard for them to succeed: 'I wish upon you ample doses of pain and suffering'
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJanuary 16, 2026
1 day ago

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.