8Layers Cybersecurity Extends Pre-Seed Round to $2.8M

·
Listen to this article~3 min

Madrid-based cybersecurity company 8Layers has closed a $1.1 million extension of its pre-Seed round, bringing total funding to $2.8 million. New investors include Criteria Venture Tech and Bankinter.

Madrid-based cybersecurity company 8Layers has closed a $1.1 million extension of its pre-Seed round to strengthen its go-to-market strategy and speed up commercialization across Europe. This brings the company's total funding to approximately $2.8 million. ### New Strategic Investors Today's raise brings in two big names from Spain's corporate venture capital scene: Criteria Venture Tech, the investment arm of CriteriaCaixa (one of Spain's largest financial holding companies), and Bankinter. This extension builds on a $1.7 million pre-Seed round the company closed back in 2025. > "We have just launched the platform commercially, and we are very proud to welcome two strategic partners who know first-hand the problem we solve," says Daniel Garcia Moran, CEO and co-founder of 8Layers. "Their entry is not just an investment: it is confirmation, from within the financial sector itself, that digital identity security is now a top-level priority." ### Growing Momentum in European Cybersecurity 8Layers' pre-Seed extension comes at a time when funding across European cybersecurity, digital identity, and compliance infrastructure is still heating up in 2026. EU-Startups has reported similar rounds, including: - Madrid-based Sybol's over $1.1 million raise for corporate digital identity infrastructure - Spain-based Zepo Intelligence's $14.3 million Seed round for AI-driven social engineering defense - Barcelona-based NeuralTrust's $19.2 million Seed round for enterprise AI-agent security - Prague-based Wultra's $7.6 million Series A for post-quantum authentication and digital identity wallet capabilities - France's MokN's $14.4 million Series A for credential-theft protection Across these examples, disclosed funding totals around $125.4 million, or $126.5 million including 8Layers' extension. With Sybol, Zepo Intelligence, and NeuralTrust, 8Layers' round sits alongside other Spanish cybersecurity and identity-adjacent financings. ### What 8Layers Does Founded in 2024, 8Layers focuses on protecting digital identities, which are among the most vulnerable assets in any organization and the leading vector of today's cyberattacks. Its platform, commercially available since May 2026, combines into one solution: - Identity Security Posture Management (ISPM) - Identity Threat Detection and Response (ITDR) - Automated compliance with European regulations (ENS, NIS2, ISO 27001) The company was founded by Daniel Garcia Moran, Pedro Palao, Pablo Carretero, and Iago Salgado, professionals with more than 20 years of experience in scalable systems development and cybersecurity. Three of them were part of the founding team of Devo, a Spanish DeepTech unicorn. ### Why This Matters for Banks The company says the investment from two players in the Spanish financial sector validates its thesis: banks face a daily rise in credential-based attacks and growing regulatory pressure from Spain's National Security Framework (ENS) and the EU's NIS2 directive. They recognize digital identity security as a top-level priority. With this fresh funding, 8Layers is well-positioned to expand its footprint across Europe and help organizations stay ahead of evolving cyber threats.

📌 Worth Reading Next