Sumit Dhawan, CEO of Proofpoint, took the reins as head of the cybersecurity company in 2022, a year after it was acquired by Thoma Bravo for $12.3 billion.
He's been pushing the firm to consider strategic opportunities such as mergers and acquisitions of smaller cybersecurity players to boost the company's market expansion and stimulate industry consolidation.
LONDON — Privately-held cybersecurity firm Proofpoint is exploring tapping external investors for pre-IPO financing and the consideration of mergers and acquisitions of smaller cyber companies as it seeks a return to public markets in 2026, CEO Sumit Dhawan told CNBC.
Noting that there are curreFntly too many players in the cybersecurity market, Dhawan said that Proofpoint is currently looking for acquisition targets that offer a "strategic fit" for the company — for the right price.
"There are at this point in time, 2,000 or so non-profitable cybersecurity companies that are venture-backed, so clearly they'll either get consolidated or potentially not exist.
Persons:
Sumit Dhawan, Thoma Bravo, Dhawan, Thoma, Dhawan's, Proofpoint
Organizations:
Privately, CNBC, Thoma Bravo