Sitehop, a Sheffield-based startup building UK sovereign encryption to future-proof networks against quantum-powered cyber attacks, has raised an additional £7.5m led by Northern Gritstone, bringing the total raised to £13.5m.
Existing investors Amadeus Capital Partners, Manta Ray, Mercia Ventures and NPIF – Mercia Equity Finance, which is managed by Mercia as part of the first Northern Powerhouse Investment Fund (NPIF), also joined the round.
As the scale and intensity of cyberattacks increase and the threat of quantum-enabled cyberattacks becomes more urgent, today’s encryption methods risk becoming obsolete. Traditional software-based encryption increases latency, slowing down data transfers and causing performance bottlenecks. Sitehop addresses this challenge with its SAFEseries system, which encrypts customer data in hardware rather than in software.
This enables networks – in telecoms, financial services and critical infrastructure – to achieve ultra-low latency and quantum-resilient security while using only a tenth of the energy of conventional systems. Even in demanding network conditions like telecoms, Sitehop has proven that hardware can run high-speed encryption with near-zero impact on performance.
Sitehop was founded in Sheffield by Melissa Chambers (CEO), a serial entrepreneur in the telecom industry, and Ben Harper (CTO), one of the world’s leading Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) and cryptography experts.
The company is already working with BT and has completed a successful proof-of-concept trial at its Gemini test facility – a replica of BT’s live network and one of the most advanced telecoms testing grounds in Europe. Sitehop is the first external company granted access to the facility, which is usually reserved for internal development. The Sitehop solution is already live with a tier one carrier across five countries.
Melissa Chambers, co-founder and CEO, Sitehop, said: “Sitehop is proving the critical need for future-proof encryption, demonstrated by our early customer traction globally. As a Sheffield-founded company, this investment from Northern Gritstone supports our mission to grow and scale in the region and build world-leading sovereign encryption capability right here in the UK – meaning we can accelerate international expansion while keeping the UK at the forefront of world-class cybersecurity innovation.”
Ben Harper, co-founder and CTO, Sitehop, said: “Our mission has always been to deliver world-class security that is ultra-low latency, hardware-enforced, and resilient against future threats like quantum computing. Partnering with Northern Gritstone enables us to accelerate our mission while strengthening the UK’s sovereign capability in critical network security. Their ‘profit with purpose’ ethos resonates strongly with us, creating technology that not only drives global growth but also delivers lasting social and economic value.”
Duncan Johnson, CEO, Northern Gritstone, said: “Our focus is always on ‘profit with purpose’, helping to support visionary companies with strong intellectual property to grow out of the North of England. Sitehop is an example of the incredible deep tech innovation coming out of Sheffield’s innovation cluster, providing game-changing technology to support businesses in future-proofing their cybersecurity protection. We’re delighted to be backing Melissa and Ben in an area as important as cryptography.”
