This article covers an investment on 6 October 2025 in Talion, a Leeds-based managed security service provider forged out of BAE Systems, founded by Keven Knight and Mike Brown. It raised £2m led by NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, with participation from Crown Fund SCA SICAV-RAIF.
Talion delivers managed detection and response and penetration testing for organisations. It protects organisations by finding threats, managing incidents and helping maintain compliance.
Mid-market organisations face escalating cyber risk and limited access to suitable security services. They are too complex for basic tools and too niche for enterprise providers.
Talion explains that it fills this gap by offering a Hybrid Defence model with managed detection and response. Services include threat intelligence, hybrid security operations, penetration testing, compliance reporting and incident response.
Talion has raised £2m in a funding round from existing backers, including NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance and Crown Fund SCA SICAV-RAIF. This makes it the 12th largest funding round in October 2025 (16 recorded). It ranks 344th of the year (488 recorded) in the Startupmag database, as of 6 October 2025.
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The key investors were:
In the funding announcement, Dawn Tyler from Mercia Ventures said:
Talion is highly rated by clients and has attracted some well-known names. However, we believe the real opportunity now lies with medium-sized companies, whose needs are too complex for small providers but who are being overcharged and underserved by the big players.
The investor added that the funding will help Talion establish a strong foothold in this part of the market.
In the funding announcement, Dr Roland Rausch from Crown said:
Crown, a regulated Luxembourg investment fund, is pleased to support the growth of Talion particularly as it seeks to expand its geographic reach with other Crown portfolio companies.
If you're researching potential backers in this space:
The founders of Talion are Keven Knight and Mike Brown.
In the funding announcement, Keven Knight, CEO of Talion explained:
The mid-market is in a gap-zone of cybersecurity: too complex for basic tools, too niche for enterprise-level bespoke providers. Talion’s Hybrid Defence model fills that gap by offering transparency, shared control, and solutions scaled to the needs of firms that are growing fast but can’t afford to be overcharged or left exposed.
The company continued the funding will allow it to accelerate its innovation in MDR (managed detection and response), threat intelligence and service delivery for mid-sized enterprises.
Talion is based in Leeds, UK.
Talion operates in the cyber security sector. This sector protects organisations, systems and data from online attacks and unauthorised access. It stops hackers stealing or damaging information.
Key trends and challenges in Cyber security:
Many medium-sized firms lack tailored security options, between basic tools and expensive enterprise services. For example, they often need managed detection and response.
Organisations struggle to hire experienced defenders, increasing reliance on external teams. For example, many use managed security providers.
Ransomware and supply-chain attacks are more common, requiring continuous monitoring. Log4Shell and high-profile ransomware incidents show the risk.
For a deeper look at innovation in this space, see the cyber security startups in the UK.
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