CloserStill Media acquires Billington CyberSecurity

CloserStill Media, the producer of market-leading business events, exhibitions and conferences, has acquired Billington CyberSecurity – organiser of the leading U.S. public sector cybersecurity conferences and events. The terms of the deal are undisclosed.

Founded in 2010, Billington CyberSecurity set out with a clear mission: to convene thought leaders from across the public and private sectors to examine cybersecurity and strengthen the U.S. cyber defenses. Over the past 16 years, Billington has established the world’s leading government cybersecurity summits for top cyber leaders in the U.S. and among its allies.

The announcement followed the 16th Annual Billington CyberSecurity Summit, held September 9-12 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington DC, which broke records with more than 3,000 attendees, over 300 speakers and 158 sponsors. It was the largest edition to date, featuring senior cybersecurity leaders from across the Five Eyes Community, the U.S. government and industry.

Attendee Laura Galante, former Director of the Cyber Threat Intelligence Integration Center at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI), said of this year’s Summit: “Billington is the energy of public and private partnerships in the federal sector and in the commercial sector coming together. You can hear it in the halls, you can feel it in the sessions, whether it’s top-level officials at the Pentagon, folks from the intelligence community and all of the different companies and ecosystem that services them. This is where good ideas come together in the defense of our networks is at the forefront of everyone’s mind.”
 
Another attendee, George Barnes, President, Cyber Practice, Red Cell Partners (former Deputy Director, NSA), said: “I come to Billington every year and the reason I come is because it brings together government, industry and academia to look at the new issues that are evolving in cybersecurity because we know cyber touches everything.”

Building on the federal summit’s success, the Billington team launched a second major event, the Billington State & Local CyberSecurity Summit, in 2024. Held annually in March, the State & Local Summit has also proven to be a key gathering for cyber leaders at all levels of government.

Billington also hosts a year-round Leadership Council for federal and state + local cyber communities.

The acquisition further strengthens CloserStill’s North America portfolio which includes over 25 events and 125 employees specifically focused on the technology, infrastructure and healthcare portfolios – most recently acquired events include Ai4 and PARCEL Forum. Globally, CloserStill continues to accelerate its presence in high-growth technology markets, including multiple cybersecurity events across the world.

Tom Billington, Chief Executive Officer and Founder, will stay on as CEO and lead the program’s content with a new role as Chief Content Officer.

“The values of Billington CyberSecurity since our founding in 2010 – producing world class content and building trusted relationships in the national security community to enhance our collective cybersecurity – remain as important today as ever,” Billington said. “I am excited and honored for our team to join forces with CloserStill Media, which deeply shares these values, and thank all our partners for making our mission possible since 2010. CloserStill grasps the importance of our mission, shares our entrepreneurial passion for events and believes that world class cyber education serves the national security interests of our country and allies.”
 
Billington CyberSecurity’s President Troy Schneider will continue to lead business operations, and both he and Tom will report to Yancy Weinrich, President, North America at CloserStill Media. The full Billington team will join CloserStill Media.

Commenting on the deal, Weinrich said:

“Under Tom’s and Troy’s leadership, Billington has built a powerful platform that plays a critical role in protecting the cyber safety of the U.S. This was clearer than ever at last week’s Summit. The Billington team’s commitment to advancing public and private-sector awareness around the importance of cybersecurity has fostered a dedicated community built on trust and purpose. These values strongly resonate with the way we operate at CloserStill.”

“This acquisition marks a significant step in our growth journey. We’re proud to be the new stewards of these market-leading and mission-driven events and look forward to building on the incredible foundation the team have created. We aim to expand its reach, deepen the content even further and ensure the events continue to shape and influence the future of cybersecurity in the North America market for many years to come.”

CloserStill Group CEO, Gareth Bowhill said:

“We’re very excited to announce this acquisition and to welcome Tom and his team to CloserStill. This strategic transaction deepens the Group’s expertise in cybersecurity as well as broadens our technology portfolio in North America. We believe that, together with the Billington CyberSecurity team, there are multiple exciting opportunities we can reach through this partnership.”

BrightTower, a New York City headquartered investment banking and M&A advisory services firm, served as exclusive financial advisor to Billington CyberSecurity in this transaction.