CrowdStrike Inc., a cybersecurity startup whose software helps protect a fifth of the Fortune 500, today revealed that it has raised $200 million in new funding on a valuation of more than $3 billion.

The round was jointly led by Accel, IVP and General Atlantic with participation from March Capital and CapitalG, Alphabet Inc.’s late-stage venture capital fund. Their investment brings CrowdStrike’s total raised to a formidable $481 billion.

CrowdStrike’s flagship Falcon security platform is built to protect the employee laptops and other endpoints connected to a company’s network. At the core of the offering is a cloud-based engine that the startup claims analyzes more than 100 billion security events a day. This data is distilled into breach prevention policies for Falcon Sensor, a lightweight agent that runs directly on endpoints and handles the execution of security tasks.

CrowdStrike has built an expansive array of services atop its platform. The cornerstone of the product line is Falcon Prevent, an antivirus that uses artificial intelligence to catch malware. It’s available alongside more than half a dozen other services that companies can use to investigate breaches, as well as find other types of security risks such as unauthorized applications.

CrowdStrike claims that its security software makes 2.3 million decisions every second. That’s partially a reflection of how big the startup’s installed base has grown in the seven years since it hit the scene. Adoption continues to grow at a brisk pace, with CrowdStrike claiming to have seen revenue jump 140 percent in the past 12 months.

Today’s newly announced round should make it easier for the startup to maintain this momentum amid the competition from Cylance Inc. and the other heavily funded players in the endpoint protection market.

The round may could well be CrowdStrike’s last before it goes public. Mike Carpenter, the startup’s global sales president, divulged in an interview last year that it’s “pretty focused on IPO readiness.” He also said that the startup has “massive growth plans” for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, a push the new funding should boost.

CrowdStrike Chief Executive Officer George Kurtz reaffirmed that message in a statement today. “We are building the business to support massive sales volume and this round of funding will accelerate the growth of our operations, continued innovation, technology development and geographic expansion,” Kurtz said. 

Photo: CrowdStrike