Israeli Cyber Firm Paragon Targets $2 Billion Valuation in US SPAC Merger
Israeli offensive cyber firm Paragon plans a New York Stock Exchange SPAC merger at a valuation of $1.5 to $2 billion, advised by Goldman Sachs and Jefferies.
The offensive cyber firm Paragon, founded by former Prime Minister Ehud Barak and former Unit 8200 alumni Brigadier General (Res.) Ehud Schnooroson and CEO Idan Nurick, announced on Monday that it plans to go public via a SPAC merger on the New York Stock Exchange. The company was acquired two years ago for $900 million by the American private equity firm AE, which focuses on defense tech, and was merged with one of its subsidiaries, Virginia-based cyber firm REDLattice. The combined operation, with Paragon forming the lion's share, is now proceeding with a SPAC merger to expand its business beyond the intelligence world and engage in larger government projects.
According to industry estimates, the company is seeking a valuation of $1.5 to $2 billion, with investment banks Goldman Sachs and Jefferies advising on the SPAC merger. Currently, Paragon accounts for 85% of AE's combined revenue. The two companies together generated $267 million over the past year, with the Israeli firm producing more than $200 million of that total. The company employs a total of 750 workers, 650 of whom are in Israel and the rest in the United States. The annual revenue growth rate stood at 29% compared to the previous year.
Paragon was sold in late 2024 to AE for $900 million, which included $500 million transferred in cash to the venture capital funds behind it—such as American Battery Ventures and Israeli Red Dot—as well as the founders, and another $400 million transferred over the past two years based on meeting business targets. Despite Paragon's decision to halt services to the Italian government following the exposure of a surveillance scandal targeting journalists in that country, estimates indicate the company met its targets. The company does not disclose its clients, aside from stating that it serves democratic and liberal nations in Western Europe, the US, and the Pacific region.
According to the University of Toronto's Citizen Lab cyber research group, which routinely tracks the activities of Israeli cyber firms, Paragon served countries such as Australia, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, and Singapore in 2025. Paragon previously held a contract with US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), but the Department of Homeland Security told the NPR news site that the contract with the Israeli-American firm has ended. Paragon, much like its Israeli rival NSO, allows governments and security forces to infiltrate smartphones or computers of suspects without their knowledge, extracting intelligence such as messages, documents, and calls. While NSO gained fame for Pegasus, Paragon markets Graphite.
Paragon has stated that it enables governments and security forces to monitor suspects involved in terrorism or crime only when a judicial warrant is issued. According to the Benzatin news site, it suspended services to the Italian government after it refused to cooperate in a joint investigation into the surveillance of journalists and activists. The offensive cyber sector has undergone shifts in recent years, with the Biden administration imposing export restrictions on the Israeli industry, limiting the export of surveillance software to non-democratic nations and placing NSO and Candiru on the blacklist.
