Expansion to North America Thanks to RSA 2020 Participation

In the coming years, the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO), InnovationQuarter (IQ) and HSD, in collaboration with the Dutch embassy and consulates, will be fully committed to doing business in the United States. A "programmatic approach to cybersecurity US" gives shape to this. Participation in the RSA conference in San Francisco is part of this. This is the largest cybersecurity conference in the world. At the beginning of this year, "The Netherlands" was there for the first time with an IT Security pavilion. ON2IT and ThreatFabric are doing good business.

ThreatFabric from Amsterdam supplies digital security solutions to financial institutions within and outside Europe. Their customers use all kinds of devices for internet and mobile banking. The company does not yet have any customers in North America. However, there are personal experiences of management team members with American customers. ThreatFabric therefore expects to gain a foothold in America. General manager Gaetan van Diemen (picture above): “Online threats do not adhere to borders. The challenges that financial institutions have in Europe are comparable to those in America. Through the RSA we are looking for new opportunities to expand in this part of the world. ”

ON2IT, on the other hand, has been active in America for a year and a half. “Our cybersecurity industry is dominated by American parties,” says Jan Jacobs, Chief Marketing Officer. "We know the country and the products well." ON2IT provides managed security. This means that ON2IT protects customers digitally via a Security Operations Center (SOC). A new hypermodern SOC was recently delivered. For many companies it is too expensive to set up this themselves, and they lack knowledge and the right people. “We have good contacts and so we received signals that in America ?? there was a need for our services. But you need patience if you want to start in this market. All kinds of legal matters and certificates must be properly arranged and you must hire the right people. ” Ultimately, ON2IT formed an experienced management team, including a former vice president of IBM and former executives of Palo Alto Networks, that has started to provide the service with caution. The business is now growing fast. Especially since Palo Alto Networks has chosen ON2IT as a global partner for managed security. "This counts as a worldwide recognition and a boost for the American market."

Jan Jacobsen, ON2IT

Growth ambition

Both companies took part in this year's trade mission to the RSA Conference. For ON2IT, the RSA and the Dutch IT pavilion helps to be visible in one of their important growth markets. Jacobs: “This is how we come into contact with existing and new customers. In addition, a joint presentation by Dutch companies shows that we are part of a national and international network of cyber security companies. ” For ThreatFabric, participation in the RSA would not have been possible without the effort of RVO, IQ and HSD. “The costs and effort cannot be borne by our company,” says Van Diemen. "Both partners have been essential for us to be able to enter into dialogue with parties from the American financial sector." All those conversations provide ThreatFabric with insight into the needs, work culture and cyber security measures of banks in America. The feedback the company is getting is positive. "We are now in further discussions with various prospects." ThreatFabric's ambition is to help financial institutions around the world keep online banking and payment services safe. "Our unique, self-built solutions can be used worldwide for this." Over the next five years, ON2IT wants to grow ten to fifteen times larger than would be possible in the Netherlands. This applies to the American and European market together. According to Jacobs, this should be feasible, because there are more potential clients in one American state alone than in the Netherlands.  

Lubricating oil for contacts

ThreatFabric recently joined the HSD Community. They were not a partner of HSD yet, but Van Diemen already heard prior to the RSA that HSD plays an important role in connecting and bringing different parties together in relation to cybersecurity. During the RSA, he notes that all participating companies have the same challenges when crossing the Atlantic. He also sees that HSD facilitates the expansion of Dutch and foreign companies, among other things through exposure and sharing knowledge about international markets. Van Diemen: “Collaboration with HSD gives access to networks of professionals all over the world, which makes it easier to make a first contact in a new market. Although we serve a niche market, we feel at home within the HSD network, many of whom are at the forefront of cybersecurity.” ON2IT is a partner of HSD and Jacobs agrees that the HSD network is an important key to entering new markets. “It is the lubricant for your contacts. You will meet interesting parties in preparation for and during the RSA. But the HSD network of governments, knowledge institutions and companies is also a driving force beyond this. It is soon that you know someone, who knows someone again, who… ”. In addition, Jacobs does not want to grow in splendid isolation. “Via HSD you can actively participate in working groups, work together pre-competitive without harming your competitive position, receive information about what is going on at European level and come into contact with interesting companies. Also important to ON2IT is the knowledge sharing from governments and knowledge institutions. "It would seem strange internationally if we don't know what's going on in our own country."

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