iNovex further builds intelligence base with new acquisition
Gettyimages.com/ Busakorn Pongparnit
By
Nick Wakeman
This is the Enlightenment Capital-backed company's second such transaction in barely as many weeks.
The acquisition engine is running hot over at iNovex, a cybersecurity and intelligence company backed by the private equity firm Enlightenment Capital.
INovex has closed its second acquisition in as many weeks with the latest buy of Secure Innovations, another cybersecurity company focused on intelligence and defense agencies. Terms of the transaction announced Thursday were not disclosed.
Earlier in May, iNovex completed its acquisition of Innoplex. That was iNovex's first purchase since it was acquired by Enlightenment.
The private equity firm is following a familiar playbook that it used in building Everwatch, which made a series of acquisitions focused almost exclusively on intelligence capabilities. That led up to its acquisition by Booz Allen Hamilton, which paid $440 million for Everwatch in 2022.
With iNovex, the focus is again on the intelligence market. Secure Innovations brings to iNovex capabilities in areas such as defensive cyber operations, systems security engineering, security automation and cybersecurity solutions.
Those skills are added to iNovex’s focus on cybersecurity, signals intelligence, data analysis, and robotic process automation for intelligence customers.
“Secure Innovations joining the team is significant. The cybersecurity expertise they bring to iNovex is unmatched and will strengthen our ability to meet the growing demand for innovative cybersecurity solutions our customers expect,” said iNovex CEO Gary Daigle.
Secure Innovations CEO Doug Jeruzal is slated to remain with the company and be a key executive across cyber programs at the combined business.
“Our customers understand cybersecurity is a significant risk to their mission,” Jeruzal said.
Enlightenment Capital’s Jason Rigoli called cybersecurity the “new arms race.”
“The national security community is actively seeking novel approaches and innovative solutions from emerging prime contractors,” said Rigoli, who chairs iNovex’s board of directors.
INovex touts having $2 billion in contract awards and more than 1,000 employees.
“The combined capabilities and solutions of both companies position us to extend our reach to new customers and markets,” Daigle said.