Manchester-based tech company Intechnica has spun off its cybersecurity arm, Netacea, as a standalone company.
The separation follows a period of significant expansion for both businesses and aims to support their further growth. In December 2021 Intechnica raised funding of £8.5m, which led to lead backer Mercia Asset Management holding 50.6% stake, with additional funding from its direct funds and the remainder from its Northern VCTs, the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF) and the North West Fund for Venture Capital (NWFVC).
Intechnica was founded in 2006 by Jeremy Gidlow and Andy Still and now employs over 70 people. It then created Netacea, which detects bot attacks that target mobile, web and API applications, in 2018. That arm now employs a 100-strong team and supports some of the world’s biggest brands including Sony, Pets at Home and William Hill.
Mercia’s holdings in both companies will be equivalent to its previous holding in the combined group.
Jeremy Gidlow, CEO of Netacea, said: “Thanks to the support of our investors, Netacea looks forward to another year of explosive growth as we continue our growth into the US market, coupled with adding more experience to our senior leadership team.”
Julian Viggars, CIO of Mercia, added: “Netacea has seen explosive growth thanks to the strength of its team, business model and the rapidly growing demand for cybersecurity solutions. By separating Netacea from Intechnica to a standalone company, it will benefit from a more specialised focus that will help it further capitalise on significant growth opportunities.”
AIM-listed Mercia currently has around £940m of assets under management and, since its IPO in December 2014, has invested about £111million gross into its direct investment portfolio.
The Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund project is supported financially by the European Union using funding from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as part of the European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme 2014-2020 and the European Investment Bank.
