Fasanara Capital Case Study – Supporting Growth
Background
Founded in 2011, Fasanara is a global asset manager and technology platform. We manage c. USD 4 billion AUM (as of December 31, 2023) in Fintech strategies on behalf of pension funds and insurance companies in Europe and North America, and a mandate from the European Investment Fund (EIF). With c. 200 employees across five offices, we are a pioneer investor in Fintech Lending, enabling Real Economy Impact.
Claritas started working with Fasanara in 2019, initially looking at their email security to protect their business from various email-borne threats. With the rise in spam, malware and phishing attacks, Mimecast was the chosen solution which offered the necessary tools to safeguard their email communications, which includes email filtering, archiving, encryption and real-time threat protection. However, with the significant growth of the business in recent years, Fasanara needed a partner who could advise them on their next IT steps.
Challenge
With the significant growth Fasanara has experienced over the recent years, and the increased workload placed on their internal systems, the business needed to increase the capacity of their firewalls. Firewalls are an essential component of safeguarding internal systems against external threats, acting as a barrier between a trusted internal network and untrusted external networks like the internet. Firewalls monitor and control incoming and outgoing network traffic based on predetermined security rules. By filtering out potentially harmful traffic, firewalls prevent unauthorised access to sensitive data and help thwart cyberattacks.
Fasanara also needed to improve their endpoint security from the cloud to their applications to ensure a secure internet access and browsing for remote users. Endpoint security focuses on protecting individual devices such as computers, laptops and mobile devices from malicious software like malware, spyware and ransomware. This is crucial as these endpoints are often the entry point for cyber threats into an organisation's network. Endpoint security solutions employ various techniques including antivirus software, intrusion detection systems and behavioural analysis to detect and block threats in real-time, thus preventing them from compromising the integrity of the system.
As a business grows, so does its digital footprint and the complexity of its IT infrastructure. With more endpoints to manage and an increasing volume of data being processed, the importance of endpoint security becomes even more pronounced. It is essential for businesses to ensure that their endpoint security solutions are scalable and adaptable to accommodate the growing workload and evolving threat landscape.
Solution
Working closely with the IT & infrastructure team, Claritas outlined various scenarios that implemented robust endpoint security solutions and upgrades to Fasanara’s firewalls in order to fortify their internal systems against malicious actors. The team implemented Perimeter 81's technology, negotiating a 6 month free trial period (with the existing IT software protection, Checkpoint Connect, to expire halfway through this initial test period), ensuring enough time to fully test that all systems and environments are fit for purpose before deployment.
Perimeter 81 is designed to deliver a suite of capabilities from zero-trust with full mesh connectivity among users, branches and applications to on-device network protection to avoiding latency and a fast and secure Internet access for remote users and branch offices.
This collaborative approach ensured that the implemented security measures aligned with the client's business objectives while providing comprehensive protection against evolving cyber threats.
Together we have been able to build and configure new firewalls with full specification to create higher availability for the business.
Testimonial
Karolos Gkesoulis, Head of IT & Infrastructure, Fasanara
“The expertise and dedication of the Claritas team were evident from the start. They took the time to understand our unique requirements, meticulously planning each phase of the upgrade process. Their proactive approach and attention to detail ensured a seamless transition, minimising disruption to our operations.
Throughout the project, communication was clear and consistent, keeping us informed every step of the way. Any challenges that arose were promptly addressed, thanks to the team's initiative and creativity.
Thanks to the collaborative efforts between my team and Claritas, we now have a modernised environment that not only meets our current needs, but also sets us up for future success."