Build38, a leading provider of mobile application protection solutions that combine AI-powered threat intelligence and the strongest app shielding technology, announced today it has closed €13 million in Series A funding. Tikehau Capital, through its European Cybersecurity Growth Fund, led the round with participation from existing investors eCAPITAL Entrepreneurial Partners and Caixa Capital Risc. With investors from France, Germany and Spain, the company has become a European champion in mobile security.

As the world increasingly shifts to mobile devices for everything from work and banking to shopping and social media, the importance of protecting applications against malicious attacks is accelerating. A single user can have on average 40 applications installed on a single mobile device, and over 70% of digital commerce now takes place on mobile. Malicious actors are leveraging popular app stores to create and spread fake, malware-infused, and fraudulent applications to unsuspecting users globally, leaving security teams and budgets stressed and struggling to keep up.

Build38 provides a zero-trust, 360° approach to securing mobile applications. Its products and solutions for mobile security include the Trusted Application Kit (T.A.K), designed to integrate into any Android or iOS mobile app during the development phase and shield it. Each layer of the Build38 framework features distinct security controls and levels of protection far more powerful than traditional Android or iOS security mechanisms, providing organisations with crucial endpoint protection, mobile application firewalls, and AI-powered threat intelligence for fraud and attack prevention. 

Build38 also enables any organisation to create self-defending mobile applications for any smartphone and comply with the increasing number of data security regulations around the world, bridging the specific gaps of each phone to the required compliance level, including PCI, eIDAS, SSI, MPoC, and others. As a result, organisations can reduce development time and efforts and decrease app security and maintenance costs, helping them overcome the global shortage of security experts and bring their ideas to market faster. 

“Mobile applications play a critical role in the functioning of today’s digital society, yet we continue to see security incidents cause severe reputational and financial damage to companies around the world,” said Dr. Christian Schläger, CEO of Build38. “As the mobile threat landscape evolves and attacks become more sophisticated, our mission is to bring continuous protection and threat intelligence to both business critical and everyday applications. We are honoured to welcome Tikehau Capital as a strategic partner on this mission and to help us through the next stages of growth.”

“Application Security is one of the fastest-growing subsegments of Cybersecurity. Build38 is building the very core of tomorrow’s Cyber defence by protecting applications, not only networks and computers,” commented Augustin Blanchard, Executive Director at Tikehau Capital. “We are proud to support this stellar team with impeccable execution capabilities in this round that will contribute to positioning Build38 as the leading mobile AppSec provider.”

Build38 has been recognised in the GARTNER Market Guide and Hype Cycle for Application Security since 2019 as part of a new generation of app-hardening technologies aimed at protecting mobile applications from the increasing number of known and unknown attacks. The company has gained strong momentum with enterprises in the financial, digital identity, automotive, and healthcare industries across EMEA and APAC, including Verimi, Minesec, Netcetera, Coppernic, Chang’an Auto, Republic Bank of Ghana, Maschinenfabrik Reinhausen (MR), among others.

After increasing the company’s presence in APAC and more than doubling in size and revenue over the past year, the new funding will help Build38 expand its global customer reach and mobile partner ecosystem even further, and continue growing its sales and marketing teams. The funding will also support Build38 as it continues to add new threat intelligence analytics and AI capabilities to its platform. 

Along with this new investment, Javier Polo and Oliver Gajek have joined the board of advisors. Javier Polo brings vast experience in B2B tech startups. Over the years, he has participated as a board member and as CEO of leading technology ventures, such as PlayGiga, acquired by Facebook in 2019. Oliver Gajek is an experienced software company executive and the former CEO of Brainloop AG.