NaaS Startup Nile Raises $175M In Series C Funding

‘One of our primary goals with this raise is to open more channels through large system integrators and service providers to expand our reach into large global customers,’ says Nile’s VP of Channels Vivek Khemani.

John Chambers-backed networking-as-a-service startup Nile on Tuesday revealed it has raised $175 million in Series C funding that will go toward the company’s global market expansion.

The latest round of funding brings Nile’s total funding to $300 million, which the company said reflects the demand from businesses for reimagined enterprise networking and more flexible ways to consume IT.

The startup’s Series C investment round was co-led by March Capital and Sanabil Investments, with strategic participation from Saudi Arabian IT solutions provider solutions by stc, Saudi Aramco venture capital arm Prosperity7, Liberty Global Ventures, and stc CIF (Corporate Investment Fund), and contribution from 8VC, Geodesic Capital, U First Capital, and Valor Equity Partners.

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Nile’s leadership team is “thrilled” about the opportunities that the new funding round brings for partner interactions, Vivek Khemani, Nile’s vice president of channels, told CRN in an email.

“Network connectivity is essential for all businesses, and the new funding allows us to continue focusing on our core strengths and drive greater market expansion. One of our primary goals with this raise is to open more channels through large system integrators and service providers to expand our reach into large global customers,” Khemani said. “Our partner program is designed to make it easy for partners to get started and quickly achieve profitability, and by using this funding to focus on our core strengths, we will further our partners’ ability to pioneer network transformation for their customers.”

San Jose, Calif.-based Nile less than a year ago exited stealth mode. The startup’s NaaS platform gives channel partners and their midmarket and enterprise clients network simplicity, security, performance, while lowering total cost of ownership for partners and end customers, according to Nile.

The company’s network-as-a-service (NaaS) platform offers wired and wireless services with built-in security features. Nile in March updated its flagship platform to include zero trust access, zero trust network and zero trust isolation.

In addition to global expansion, the latest round of financing will help the company remove operational complexities plaguing enterprise networking today while offering integrated defenses to protect both wired and wireless connectivity from cyberattacks. The company has rapidly expanded beyond North America into Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia as demand increases globally for NaaS offerings, Nile said.

The channel-friendly company is working with more than 100 channel and service provider partners today, according to Nile.