Worklyn Partners has raised $35 million for a debut fund that's designed to acquire MSPs and cybersecurity companies. The firm has already acquired two businesses, though specific details have not been disclosed.
Updated January 19, 2022: Worklyn Partners acquires Managed Detection and Response (MDR) security service provider.
Admittedly, the MSP, MSSP and cybersecurity software markets are flooded with private equity and venture capital funds. To stand out, Worklyn offers business owners the "opportunity to lead a growing platform rather than be subsumed as an add-on," the firm said.
Worklyn was co-founded by Johnny Lieberman and Zack Miller.
- Lieberman is a Harvard Business School and Emory University graduate who gained investment banking & M&A experience at Morgan Stanley (separately, Morgan Stanley today acquired an MSSP). Lieberman also was an investment analyst at Oasis Management, a private investment fund management company.
- Miller is a Dartmouth, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School and The Wharton School. He has held key posts at The Chertoff Group, and also consulted with a cybersecurity-focused VC, private equity-backed defense tech rollup, and a venture stage secure collaboration company, according to his LinkedIn bio.
Worklyn Partners: IT and Cybersecurity Services Investment Thesis
In a prepared statement about the fund and its focus, Lieberman said:
“Cybersecurity and IT services represent large, fragmented markets that are growing rapidly yet uniquely primed for consolidation. By investing in ‘pick-and-shovel’ service providers that provide fundamental IT and cybersecurity capabilities, and can serve as platforms for future add-on acquisitions, we believe we are building the train tracks before the train comes. We see incredible growth potential for our portfolio companies.”
Added Miller:
“The proliferation of ransomware attacks has accelerated demand for cybersecurity down market to smaller businesses. We believe integrated service providers are the necessary vehicle for bringing complicated new technologies to the middle market and smaller enterprises that currently lack necessary budget, expertise, and skilled resources to combat the severity and sophistication of today’s cyber attacks. In response, Worklyn is building connected teams and solutions that can flexibly evolve to help meet the increasingly-intertwined IT and cybersecurity challenges facing businesses and government entities.”
Worklyn Partners: Next MSP and Cybersecurity Investments
It sounds like Worklyn Partners will soon formally announce the first two acquisitions or investments. Next up, the firm is "actively looking to acquire or execute control investments in IT and cybersecurity services companies in 2022," the firm said. Interested owners can contact Miller via email ([email protected]).
