A Message From Our CEO: Checkmarx’s Acquisition & The Road Ahead

We are all living in unconventional and unprecedented times. The entire world is adjusting to the rapidly-changing dynamics brought on by Coronavirus (COVID-19). Here at Checkmarx, we are taking deliberate and preventative measures to protect our global community of employees, customers, and partners. Our top priority is the health and safety of our team and those we work with, as well as providing unparalleled service to our customers. Yet, in the midst of all of this uncertainty, this week, we announced the exciting news that Hellman & Friedman has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Checkmarx at an amazing valuation of $1.15 billion. This deal represents the largest-ever transaction in the application security market and one of the largest security transactions of the year. Given that this is a momentous event for Checkmarx, I would like to share a bit more about what it means. Maty Siman – Checkmarx’s founder and CTO, and my business partner for over fourteen years – realized that our world was rapidly headed down a path of digital transformation driven by software proliferation. And while this clearly had, and continues to have, its positives, it also opened our society up to an entirely new landscape of software-borne security risks. We knew solutions were needed to help organizations and everyday people stay secure as software entered their work environments, populated their homes, and landed in their pockets, on their wrists, in their cars, and more. And, in tandem, we knew there needed to be an easier way for developers to develop secure applications and software. Thus, Checkmarx was born. Fast forward to today, and the now global team at Checkmarx remains relentless in our mission to empower organizations to deliver secure software at scale. More than ever, security must be top-of-mind for us all, and we view Hellman and Friedman’s financial commitment as further validation of our mission and a strong endorsement that we have the right technology and strategy in place to make software and security inseparable. This deal will enable us to continue developing the business independently, scale to new heights, innovate with new products and capabilities, and deliver top-notch service for our customers and partners better than ever before. We couldn’t be more grateful for Hellman & Friedman’s confidence in us moving forward, as well as our existing investor – Insight Venture Partners – who will continue to own a substantial interest in the company. The last fourteen years have been intense, and at the same time tremendously rewarding. From watching the Checkmarx team grow from 2 to more than 700 employees across 20 countries, to helping over 1,400 of the world’s top organizations deliver secure software at scale, it’s been an incredible journey...and we are only just getting started. This is an exciting and humbling time both for me, and all of Checkmarx, and I would like to personally thank our amazing team, as well as our customers, partners, and investors who have stood by us over the years. Thank you for your continued business and support. We couldn’t be more excited about the road ahead. All the best, Emmanuel Benzaquen Checkmarx CEO