The UK Bill that could transform open finance & CyberTech deals to plummet 45% in 2024

How the UK’s Digital Information and Smart Data Bill will impact open finance

Originally introduced to the UK Parliament by the previous Conservative government, the Digital Information and Smart Data Bill has been taken forward by the current Labour government, with the legislation currently at the Committee stage in the House of Lords.

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Research highlight

Global CyberTech market set for 45% drop in deal activity for 2024 as investors focus on larger deals

Key CyberTech investment stats in Q3 2024:

• Global CyberTech deal activity dropped by 26% YoY
• Global CyberTech deal activity projected to drop by 45% for 2024 as investors focus on larger deals
• Torq, a leader in AI-driven cybersecurity hyper-automation solutions, secured one of the largest CyberTech deals for the quarter with a Series C funding round of $70m

In the third quarter of 2024, the global CyberTech sector experienced a noteworthy YoY decline in both deal activity and funding levels.

The third quarter of 2024 closed with 71 deals, representing a 42% decrease from the 124 deals recorded in Q3 2023 and a 26% drop from the 96 deals seen in Q2 2024.

Total funding in Q3 2024 amounted to $2.07bn, largely unchanged from the $2.08bn raised in Q3 2023 but reflecting a sharp 45% decrease from the $3.74bn raised in Q2 2024.

Trend analysis showed that projected deal count for 2024 would reach 284 deals, marking a 45% decline from the 517 transactions completed in 2023.

The analysis indicated that total funding for the year would close at $8.3bn, representing a modest 4% decrease from the $8.79bn raised in 2023.

Funding from deals under $100m reached $966m in Q3 2024, marking a 32% decline from the $1.42bn recorded in Q3 2023 and a 30% drop from the $1.37bn seen in Q2 2024.

Larger deals valued at $100m or more totalled $1.1bn in Q3 2024, up 66% from the $663m raised by such deals in Q3 2023 but down 54% from the $2.37bn recorded in Q2 2024.

This shift towards fewer high-value deals highlights, with a reduced appetite for smaller investments and a focus on selective opportunities amid ongoing challenges in the global CyberTech industry.

Torq, a leader in AI-driven cybersecurity hyper-automation solutions, has secured one of the largest global CyberTech deals for the quarter with a $70m Series C funding round led by Evolution Equity Partners.

The funding will enable Torq to enhance its generative AI capabilities, expand its talent pool, and accelerate its presence across the EMEA and APAC regions.

Torq’s HyperSOC platform leverages AI to automate and optimise security operations centre (SOC) activities, enabling rapid investigation, triage, and remediation of security events.

By eliminating manual inefficiencies in legacy security systems, the platform delivers comprehensive protection while allowing security analysts to focus on strategic priorities.

This investment positions Torq to further strengthen its innovative solutions as enterprises increasingly adopt AI-driven hyper-automation to combat evolving cybersecurity threats.

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