Token raises $13M and appoints CEO scale biometric authentication wearable business

Biometric wearable-maker Token has raised $13 million in a Series B funding round for solution development and demand generation and appointed John Gunn as chief executive officer to help execute that mission.

Token contrasts from many biometric wearables with its emphasis on authentication, rather than health data. Its products are intended for passwordless, multifactor authentication with fingerprint biometrics for logical access control to networks and critical assets. The company notes in the announcement the prevention of social engineering, breaches and ransomware among its goals.

The appointment of Gunn as CEO follows what Token Chairperson Kevin Surace characterizes as a “lengthy and comprehensive search.” He was chosen for his authentication industry experience, deep knowledge of the cybersecurity industry, and track record leading multiple startups to hyper-growth, Surace says.

“Authentication is absolutely broken. Consider that for more than five years, eight out of 10 data breaches and successful ransomware attacks have been the result of compromised user credentials,” comments Token CEO, John Gunn. “A bulletproof approach to user authentication that works with existing solutions, greatly enhances security, and is the ultimate in user convenience is certain to be a winner.”

Grand Oaks Capital, investment arm of Paychex Founder Tom Golisano, led the investment.

“We have great faith in the Token team and are confident in their ability to be a leading provider of authentication and cybersecurity solutions that have incredibly great ROI,” states Grand Oaks Capital Chief Investment Officer, David Bovenzi. “Token has a short path to revenue and then rapidly scaling the business, and cybersecurity has always been a recession-proof business.”

The funding is a big boost for Token which received $1.75 million in funding from the Empire State Development fund back in 2018, and had previously totaled $9.9 million according to Crunchbase.

Article Topics

access management  |  biometric authentication  |  biometrics  |  cybersecurity  |  funding  |  investment  |  multi-factor authentication  |  Token  |  wearables