South Africa’s Omnisient, a secure data collaboration platform, has secured US$1.4 million in funding for global expansion.
Omnisient is a Privacy-by-Design startup established in Cape Town that specializes in secure data-sharing for enterprises. The platform of the startup allows organizations to reap the benefits of data collaboration while safeguarding consumer data privacy and intellectual property.
Omnisient’s proprietary technology also allows organizations to collaborate with other entities to compare shared, de-identified customer assets without disclosing personal information. This concept – data virtualization – allows companies to enable business intelligence (BI) and analytics teams to unpack new insights and target new audiences, all without physically sharing data.
Since its launch, the platform has gained a large number of South African companies, including big banks, insurers, and retailers, and it received pre-Series A funding from Nedbank CIB, Investec, and Compass Venture Capital last year.
It has now followed that up with a further US$1.4 million round, taking total investment to US$2.2 million so far. This round is again led by Nedbank, Investec and Compass Venture Capital, and also features Technova, Grand Bay Ventures, Tahseen Consulting, and Kepple Africa Ventures.
“The data economy is at the heart of the digital transformation that many of our customers embraced a couple of years back and this has been accelerated by the global pandemic. We see a huge and largely unaddressed market opportunity,” said Jon Jacobson, chief executive officer (CEO).
The investment will be used to expand the Omnisient team, accelerate product development and drive international expansion, initially in the United States (US), United Kingdom (UK), and the Middle East.
“Omnisient is a company with the potential to disrupt a global market. They have assembled a world-class team and are building a unique transformational data exchange and collaboration product,” said Shane Rogel of Grand Bay Ventures. “We are excited about the opportunity, in both South Africa and abroad, and have the utmost confidence in the team and their ability to deliver on their vision.”