Sunstates Security buys TorchStone to add executive protection
What's the deal? Sunstates SecurityDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → has acquired TorchStone GlobalDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom →, a risk mitigation and security firm specialising in protective intelligence, threat analysis, and executive protection. TorchStone will keep its own name and brand, led by chief executive officer and co-founder Frank Rodman. Terms were not disclosed.
What each side brings: Sunstates, founded in 1998 in Raleigh, NC, is a nationwide security provider with more than 7,500 employees, best known for contract guarding. TorchStone, founded in 2010, runs a Global Security Operations Center near Nashville, TN, offering 24/7 threat monitoring and executive protection in more than 100 countries.
What's the endgame? The deal extends Sunstates beyond guarding into intelligence-led advisory and executive protection. The two firms will explore ways to serve shared clients — routing Sunstates' corporate customers to TorchStone for protection needs, and introducing TorchStone clients to Sunstates' guarding.
Why it matters: TorchStone counts more than 150 corporations, 100 families, 15 non-profit and faith-based organisations, and four professional sports leagues among its clients. Its team operates across more than 20 metropolitan areas in six countries.
"TorchStone brings a capability we've never had, an intelligence-led advisory and executive protection practice built by people who are the best at what they do," said Denis Kelly, chief executive officer of Sunstates Security.
Rodman said joining Sunstates gives his team "the backing of one of the country's leading security solutions companies, without asking us to change how we operate or who we are."
The signal: The acquisition reflects a broader push in the security industry to pair traditional guarding with higher-margin, intelligence-driven advisory services — bundling physical protection and threat analysis under one roof to serve corporate and high-profile clients.
Image credit: Diplomatic Security Service
Read more: AP News
