AppointmentMerlin Ventures appoints Andrew Smeaton as CISO-in-Residence
Appointment
Merlin Ventures appoints Andrew Smeaton as CISO-in-Residence
“With Andrew, our ability to stand out in the Israeli cybersecurity market and give added value to entrepreneurs will even increase,” said Managing Partner Shay Michel
Merlin Ventures has announced that it appointed Andrew Smeaton as the firm’s CISO-in-Residence. In the role, Smeaton will provide strategic and technical counsel to Merlin Ventures’ portfolio companies and strengthen alignment between the needs of today’s CISOs with Merlin’s portfolio companies and prospects. It is understood he will also expand the firm’s existing community of more than 300 security executives who meet with and provide feedback to startups in Merlin’s network.
“When I met Seth and the Merlin Ventures team, I was immediately impressed with their creativity, skill, and expertise when it comes to elevating cybersecurity startups,” said Smeaton. “The company has already built an incredible community of innovators, buyers, and investors, which is critical to success in today’s competitive cyber market. Their method of operation closely aligns with my own community-based philosophy and how I approach all personal and professional relationships. I’m looking forward to working with Merlin Ventures to continue to iterate and grow its community and apply a more data-driven methodology to extracting feedback and insights from CISOs.”
Smeaton has more than 25 years of security leadership across industries such as government, healthcare, and finance. He has held the role of CISO since 2006 at companies like DataRobot, Saudi Investment Bank (SAIB), and MIB Group. Smeaton holds the CISSP, CISA, CGEIT, CCISO, CISM, and CRISC credentials, has expertise in regulatory compliance and privacy, and has served on executive boards and advised government agencies on information security.
Managing Partner Shay Michel added: "Recently, despite the challenges, we are meeting more Israeli entrepreneurs; with Andrew, our ability to stand out in the Israeli cybersecurity market and give added value to entrepreneurs will even increase."
Merlin Ventures is the venture capital affiliate of The Merlin Group, a network of companies bringing technologies to the U.S. Government market for more than 25 years. It scales companies and introduces solutions designed to help enterprises address today's most critical cybersecurity challenges.
