Dragos, a US operational technology (OT) cybersecurity firm, acquired Phosphorus, a competitor that Chris Rouland, Rebecca Rouland and Earle Ady founded (press release).
NYSE-listed IT consultancy firm Accenture recently announced the buy of Dragos from Hercules Capital, WestCap and other venture capital investors (press release).
Italy’s Neva sold its stake in Phosphorus (press release) after having subscribed a round that the company secured in April 2025 (see here a previous post by BeBeez). In 2022, Phosphorus attracted 38 million US Dollars from SYN Ventures, MassMutual Ventures (lead investors), CRV (Charles River Ventures), and Paul Holland (Founder Collective). In 2023 Phosphorus secured a 27 million round that Evolution Equity Partners led and SYN Ventures joined.
Mario Costantini, the ceo and coo of Neva, said: “The Phosphorus-Dragos transaction and our exit confirm the soundness of Neva II and Neva II Italia funds management whose investment strategy aims at building a diversified portfolio of highly innovative companies with varying potential and different speeds of implementation and distribution: on the one hand, mature and dynamic US companies; on the other, Italian and European companies at the start of their growth journey. Key performance indicators place the Neva II and Neva II Italia funds at the very top of the international rankings compared to benchmarks for funds of similar maturity. We will continue along this path, carefully selecting companies in Italy and abroad that are characterised by distinctive technologies and an innovative approach, capable of providing concrete solutions to the challenges of our time, with a particular focus on digital technology, alternative energy, medical biotechnology and aerospace”.
On 24 June, Wednesday, Neva said that after the exit from Phosphorus, Neva II hit a DPI (Distributions to Paid-In Capital) of 11% and expects a 1.06X TVPI (Total Value to Paid-In Capital) taking into account the value of the portfolio as well as charges, call-ins and distributions during the period. Neva II Italia, a PIR compliant vehicle for institutional investors like pension funds, hit a 7% DPI and expects a 1X TVPI with the same criteria as Neva II. Neva II Italia can benefit from the proportion of investments made in the US market, which enables it to begin distributing returns whilst waiting for the Italian market to grow and appreciate in value.
Neva First ended its investment period in September 2024 is set to reach a total of 24 million euros in distributions to investors over the coming weeks with a DPI of 11%. Neva First is a vehicle that invests 30% of its resources in Italian startups and 70% in US, Israeli and international firms, and international venture capital funds. In September 2022, it raised 250 million euros (see here a previous post by BeBeez).
In September 2024, Neva launched Neva II with a fundraising target of around 400 million euros, to invest in global leading, highly innovative start-ups, whilst Neva II Italia plans to fetch 100 million euros for supporting Italian companies (see here a previous post by BeBeez).
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