BGV is excited to announce our investment in Stack Identity, a Silicon Valley startup that is solving the “shadow access” problem with automated identity and access management (IAM) operations. Co-founded by cybersecurity industry veterans with decades of experience across Symantec, McAfee, IBM, Netskope and BlueCoat, Stack Identity has emerged from stealth mode with a $4 million seed funding round co-led by WestWave Capital and BGV.
At BGV, we’ve identified a confluence of intersecting trends – including the acceleration of the cloud-native era, the rise of data-centric and data-first applications, and the increasing use of large language models to power data-centric and API-driven applications – that generate an ever expanding digital surface area that enterprises must protect. With zettabytes of data pouring into cloud environments, the risk of data breaches and GRC failures presents a daily threat to generally over-permissive cloud accounts. Stack Identity addresses this critical issue by providing a secure and scalable identity management solution that integrates seamlessly with cloud environments.
Their particular solution addresses the friction point between development and security teams. Identity and Access are the foundational security controls that glue cloud services together; however, development and security teams are often at odds when it comes to Cloud IAM. Developers prefer the most permissive access possible so they can push deployments and maintain an increasingly competitive pace of DevOps innovation. Security teams, by contrast, are held accountable for protecting and safeguarding sensitive data, so prefer more restrictive permissioning. The challenge lies in the complexity of wrangling Cloud IAM so development and security teams can make the right productivity and risk tradeoffs.
Through its patent-pending innovation, Stack Identity simplifies and automates Cloud IAM operations with a risk-based approach that takes into account deep data and applications context. By lifting the curtain on unauthorized, unmonitored, and invisible access patterns, Stack Identity provides much needed visibility in identifying, prioritizing and recommending remedial solutions. Enterprise clients enjoy unparalleled benefits in managing the complex identity and access needs of their employees, partners, and customers, while modernizing their IAM.
This modernization is a fundamental pillar of BGV’s Enterprise 4.0 investment thesis, which focuses on B2B startups that combine artificial intelligence, intelligent automation, and proprietary access to data to deliver actionable insights for enterprise businesses. Stack Identity’s verticalized full-stack solution addresses programmable cloud infrastructure, while generating immediate business value and significant ROI improvements for their customers.
With a suite of industry experts with deep domain knowledge and experience in building successful cybersecurity and identity management solutions, Stack Identity’s team is the backbone of its success. They bring an intimate understanding of the challenges, trade offs, capabilities and operating environments in which Cloud IAM solutions are sub-optimized, generating security risks and inefficiencies. This rapidly expanding need bodes well for Stack Identity.
We are excited to be a part of Stack Identity’s journey and look forward to seeing their continued success. BGV’s investment in Stack Identity is a testament to our belief in the company’s potential to revolutionize the identity management industry and provide a valuable solution to enterprise businesses.
