Key Takeaways
- • Databento raised a $100 million Series C at a $1.1 billion valuation, led by Fifth Down Capital, an early investor, per HedgeCo.Net, which reported the company's announcement on November 12.
- • Participation came from nearly all existing investors, including NEA, DRW Venture Capital, Tribe Capital and Hedosophia, with Fitch Ventures joining as a strategic investor.
- • Databento says it more than doubled revenue since its $97 million Series B earlier this year while remaining profitable, with 39 employees at the time of the Series C close.
- • The company has signed enterprise contracts with five of the six leading frontier AI labs, adding AI demand as a second driver alongside quant trading firms.
- • The round signals growing competition in a market long dominated by a few large incumbents, as API-first, usage-based providers pressure legacy terminal and feed economics for systematic managers.
Summary
Datento, a market data platform used by quantitative trading firms, brokerages and asset managers, has raised a $100 million Series C at a $1.1 billion valuation, according to HedgeCo.Net. The round was led by Fifth Down Capital, an early investor, with participation from nearly all existing investors, including NEA, DRW Venture Capital, Tribe Capital and Hedosophia. The company announced the raise on November 12. Fitch Ventures joined as a strategic investor. Gabby Munoz, global head of M&A and venture investments at Fitch Group, said that "financial data is becoming increasingly API-driven and machine-consumed," adding that Databento has built "differentiated infrastructure at the source."
The Series C follows a $97 million Series B earlier this year. Databento says it has more than doubled revenue since that round while remaining profitable. At the time of the Series C close, the company had 39 employees, a fraction of the headcount of traditional market data vendors. It has also signed enterprise contracts with five of the six leading frontier AI labs.
Databento provides real-time and historical data across futures, options, equities and indices through a single API, and owns the stack from source capture to delivery. The new capital will fund further infrastructure investment and expansion into additional asset classes.
For hedge funds and trading firms, the round highlights growing competition in a market long dominated by a few large incumbents. Market data is one of the largest non-compensation costs for systematic managers, and API-first providers with usage-based pricing are pressuring legacy terminal and feed economics. HedgeCo.Net notes that AI labs' demand for clean historical financial data adds a second demand driver that could support further consolidation and investment in the category.
The Series C follows a $97 million Series B earlier this year. Databento says it has more than doubled revenue since that round while remaining profitable. At the time of the Series C close, the company had 39 employees, a fraction of the headcount of traditional market data vendors. It has also signed enterprise contracts with five of the six leading frontier AI labs.
Databento provides real-time and historical data across futures, options, equities and indices through a single API, and owns the stack from source capture to delivery. The new capital will fund further infrastructure investment and expansion into additional asset classes.
For hedge funds and trading firms, the round highlights growing competition in a market long dominated by a few large incumbents. Market data is one of the largest non-compensation costs for systematic managers, and API-first providers with usage-based pricing are pressuring legacy terminal and feed economics. HedgeCo.Net notes that AI labs' demand for clean historical financial data adds a second demand driver that could support further consolidation and investment in the category.
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