AURIGA Cyber Ventures II Hits €80M First Close for European Security

AURIGA has announced an interim close of €80 million for AURIGA Cyber Ventures II, its second fund dedicated to cybersecurity. The vehicle already exceeds the size of the first fund, launched in 2022 with €55 million, by roughly 45%. Fundraising continues, with a target of €100 million and a cap of €120 million.

The fund plans to back about thirty European startups from pre-seed to Series A, with minority stakes and tickets ranging from €500,000 to €5 million. Around half of the capital is earmarked for follow-on investments in the most promising portfolio companies, so the team can increase its positions as they prove their product and win customers.

Bpifrance among the investors

Bpifrance lists the fund among its new commitments in its first-half 2026 review, via the Fonds national d'amorçage 3, managed on behalf of the French state under France 2030. The first fund drew entrepreneurs from the sector and institutional investors including Tikehau Capital, BNP Paribas and Bpifrance through FNA 2.

AI as both a tool and a target

The investment thesis covers identity and data protection, application and software supply chain security, vulnerability management and next-generation cryptography, including post-quantum. AI cuts across the strategy: it enables automation for security teams while creating new needs around protecting models, data and software agents.

The first four investments reflect this. Finovox fights document fraud, Fleuret builds AI-driven automated penetration testing, Mankinds focuses on auditing and compliance of AI systems, and Nextident works on AI agent security.

AURIGA Partners, co-founded in 1998 by Jacques Chatain, has backed more than 150 companies, including Neolane, Nexthink, Wallix and Vade. It sold its Nexthink stake to Vista Equity Partners in 2025, in a deal valuing the company at about $3 billion, according to legal adviser DLA Piper. The firm reports more than €500 million distributed to investors over 2025/2026, a figure that reflects its overall history rather than the performance of the first cyber fund.

"We have a particularly dynamic pool of talent, technologies and startups that needs both significant capital and specialized support," said Managing Partner Geoffroy Rosset. AURIGA expects two to three more investments before the end of 2026.