Leeds-based Xentra raises £2.7m from Maven VCTs and NPIF II
This article covers Xentra, a Leeds-based digital security startup, which has raised £2.7m in a seed funding round to accelerate growth. The investment will fund hires, product development and the expansion of its subscription-based managed cybersecurity services for education providers and SMEs.
Xentra, a Leeds-based digital security company, has raised £2.7m in a seed funding round to accelerate growth after quadrupling its annual recurring revenue over two years. The investment will fund hires, product development and go-to-market activity as the firm expands its subscription-based managed cybersecurity services for education and small and medium-sized enterprises.
Why it matters
The funding highlights demand for outsourced, subscription-based cybersecurity services among organisations that lack large in-house security teams. Xentra’s traction — a fourfold increase in ARR and a customer base of more than 90 organisations — makes it a regional example of how managed security offerings can address compliance, safeguarding and insurance-driven requirements.
The round also illustrates continued appetite from regional funds and government-backed programmes to back technology businesses outside London, channeling capital into the North of England’s tech ecosystem.
Inside the product
Xentra packages software, services and expertise into its STAX bundles and a proprietary customer portal. The company sells subscription-based managed cybersecurity, compliance and safeguarding solutions aimed at simplifying procurement and ongoing management for customers. Its modular, tiered approach is designed to enable upsell and to make cybersecurity more accessible for education providers and SMEs.
Current customers include Leeds United Football Club, Leeds Bradford Airport, Vista Technology Support, JT Atkinson and multi-academy trust Shaw Education Trust — organisations that illustrate demand across sports, transport, IT service providers, construction and education for outsourced security and compliance support.
Who are the investors?
The round is backed by Maven VCTs and NPIF II – Maven Equity Finance, managed by Maven Capital Partners as part of the Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund II. The investors cite growing market demand for outsourced, subscription-based cybersecurity driven by rising cyber risk, regulation and insurance requirements as the rationale for backing Xentra.
In the announcement, Lewis Jones, investor at Maven, said:
Xentra operates in attractive and growing market with demand for outsourced, subscription-based cyber security driven by increasing cyber risk, regulatory standards and insurance requirements. Henry and the senior team have decades of experience in dealing with cyber vendors to allow them to find the right solutions for customers. The business has quadrupled ARR in the last two years alone across a customer database of over 90 and we’re delighted to invest at this time as the business continues to scale.
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Founder perspective
In the announcement, Henry Doyle, CEO of Xentra, said:
This investment gives us the resources to accelerate our growth plans and strengthen every part of the business. We have built Xentra by focusing on what matters most; expert advice, responsive support and solutions that genuinely help our customers manage increasingly complex cyber security, compliance and safeguarding requirements. The funding will allow us to invest in our people, our technology and our customer experience, ensuring we continue to deliver the high levels of service now expected as we scale. We’re pleased to be partnering with Maven and NPIF II at this stage of our journey and look forward to building on what has already been a very strong few years.
Doyle outlined plans to recruit senior leadership, step up marketing and partner activity, and further develop the STAX bundles and customer portal to drive acquisition and upsell.
The bigger picture
Xentra’s raise sits within a broader trend of investors backing managed, subscription-based cybersecurity firms that serve education and SME markets. These segments are seeing increased regulatory scrutiny and insurance pressures, which can push organisations toward outsourced providers that combine tooling with operational support.
The involvement of NPIF II underscores the role of regionally focused funds in directing capital to northern tech companies, while private investors continue to show interest in cybersecurity models that generate recurring revenue.
This transaction adds to growing evidence that UK cybersecurity startups outside London can attract institutional capital, reinforcing efforts to build a more geographically balanced tech ecosystem across the UK and Europe.
They've invested in Xentra
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| Investors | Investment Focus | Startup Investments | Round Size | Connect |
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