About Databento
Databento helps financial firms get current and historical information about financial markets through one software connection. Its market data covers several asset classes, including futures, options, and equities. Customers include quantitative trading firms, brokerages, and asset managers. Other customers include commodities firms, digital asset companies, and AI labs.
Databento is based in Salt Lake City and serves thousands of users. It distributes data from more than 60 trading venues. Its customers range from startups to investment firms managing billions of dollars. Five of the six largest labs building advanced AI models have enterprise contracts. Co-founder and CEO Christina Qi leads the company.
Funding Rounds (SEC Form D)
| First sale | Filed with SEC | Amount sold | Investors | Avg. check | Terms | Filing |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oct 5, 2026 | Nov 12, 2026 | $100,449,711fully sold | 20 | $5.0M | EquityRule 506(b) | Form D ↗ |
| Apr 29, 2026 | Jul 9, 2026 | $97,025,539fully sold | 19 | $5.1M | Equity, OptionsRule 506(b) | Form D ↗ |
| Oct 28, 2021 | Nov 12, 2021amended Nov 19, 2024 | $34,249,960fully sold | 53 | $646K | EquityRule 506(b) | Form D/A ↗1 earlier filing |
| Mar 3, 2021 | Mar 18, 2021 | $4,150,000fully sold | 22 | $188K | OptionsRule 506(b) | Form D ↗ |
| Jul 23, 2019 | Aug 2, 2019 | $2,500,001of $3.3M target | 7 | $357K | EquityRule 506(b) | Form D ↗ |
| Total, five offerings | $238,375,211 | |||||
First sale is the date the first investor in the offering committed to invest. Companies must file Form D within 15 days of that date, so filing dates run later.
What the SEC Filings Show
- Rick Yang of New Enterprise Associates, which led the Series B round, first appears as a director on the Form D that Databento filed on November 12, 2026. [7][13][1]
- Series B began taking money on April 29, 2026, about 2.3 months before the announcement. The Form D filed on July 9, 2026 shows $97.0 million sold, the full offering, from 19 investors, or about $5.1 million each. [8]
- David Lin first appears as a director on the Form D that Databento filed on November 12, 2021, and was last listed on the amended Form D it filed on November 19, 2024. [9][10]
- Geoffrey Bernstein first appears as a director on the Form D that Databento filed on March 18, 2021. [11]Form D filings that name Geoffrey Bernstein (13):
- Proteus Motion, executive officer: Feb 2, 2017 · Aug 4, 2017 (amended) · Jul 5, 2018 (amended) · Nov 19, 2018 · Mar 26, 2020 · Apr 5, 2022 · May 26, 2023 · Oct 3, 2025
- Databento, director: Mar 18, 2021 · Nov 12, 2021 · Nov 19, 2024 (amended) · Jul 9, 2026 · Nov 12, 2026
Who Invested in Databento
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| Announced | Round | Amount | Lead | Other investors | On the Form D | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 12, 2026 | Series C | $100 million at a $1.1 billion valuation | Fifth Down Capital | NewFitch Ventures.ReturningFifth Down Capital; NEA; DRW Venture Capital; Tribe Capital; Redpoint Ventures; Hedosophia; Trousdale Ventures; Cross Creek; Operator Collective; AVG; TGVP. | [2][3] | |
| Jul 9, 2026 | Series B | $97 million | New Enterprise Associates | DRW Venture Capital, Redpoint Ventures, and Tribe Capital participated. The round drew more than $300 million in demand. | First sale Apr 29, 2026; $97,025,539 of $97,025,539 from 19 investors. [8] | [1] |
| Nov 4, 2025 | Strategic investment | Undisclosed | — | ReturningExisting investors. | [6] | |
| Oct 30, 2024 | Series A+ | $10 million additional; $30 million total Series A | — | NewBelvedere Trading; Clear Street; Lightscape Partners.ReturningExisting shareholders. | [5] | |
| Nov 2021 | Series A | Over $27 million raised across initial rounds | — | — | [4] |
Announced amounts can differ from Form D figures: an announcement can combine several closings, and some money is raised without a Form D.
Why Investors Backed Databento
Financial firms have long faced months of procurement and integration before they can use market data. Fifth Down backed Databento before revenue because it could challenge the established delivery model. NEA saw an unusual combination of product, traction, and founding team. [1][3]
“Our confidence has only grown as Databento's traction and execution have demonstrated it can serve demanding institutional customers, sustain rapid growth, and build a profitable business.”
Origin and Team
Databento was founded in February 2019, with Christina Qi as a co-founder. Qi previously worked at Domeyard, UBS, and Goldman Sachs. Luca Lin previously led trading and quantitative research at Domeyard. [4]
Product and Technology
Databento keeps servers in facilities beside each trading venue, so it can capture data directly from the source. [5]
Customers can get petabytes of data through software connections or a browser that requires no code. More than 15 formats are available, with timestamps precise to one billionth of a second. [5]
Databento offers raw packet captures, called PCAPs. It also delivers full order book feeds through the cloud. [4]
Use of Funds
- Series C financing will fund market-data infrastructure and coverage of additional asset classes. [3]
- Series B capital will broaden coverage across asset classes and geographies. [1]
- The Series B expansion will grow Databento's network beyond 20 data centers worldwide. [1]
- Series B plans include more than 100 petabytes of additional storage. [1]
- Series A+ funding will extend data histories and expand coverage in Europe and global indices. [5]
- Series A+ funding will also support performance upgrades and new pricing plans. [5]
- The strategic funding will add data centers, storage at existing sites, and hardware upgrades. [6]
- The strategic funding will add Layer 1 switching to timestamp data closer to exchange handoffs and reduce timing variation. [6]
- The strategic funding will improve options feeds and add CFE and equity-market coverage. [6]
Milestones
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| Date | What happened | Source | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 12, 2026 | Revenue had more than doubled since the Series B, while Databento remained profitable. | [3] | — |
| Nov 12, 2026 | Databento had nearly finished infrastructure buildouts at nine data centers within four months. Sites included ASX ALC, HKEX, and JPX. | [2] | — |
| Jul 9, 2026 | Databento reported 6.65-fold annual revenue growth and more than 97% enterprise customer retention since inception. | [1] | — |
| Jul 9, 2026 | Active software-interface users had more than doubled in recent months. | [1] | — |
| Dec 12, 2025 | Christina Qi received the UBS Female Founder Award. | [4] | — |
| Nov 4, 2025 | A major quantitative hedge fund selected Databento as its main options-market data provider. The deal was expected to generate millions in revenue. | [6] | — |
| Nov 4, 2025 | Databento reported a 4.2-fold increase in GAAP revenue and 187% user growth over the prior year. | [6] | — |
| Nov 4, 2025 | Databento had launched more than 15 new datasets over the prior year. | [6] | — |
| Nov 4, 2025 | Databento introduced flat-rate subscription plans alongside usage-based pricing. | [6] | — |
| Nov 4, 2025 | Databento reported record quarterly revenue growth for the third quarter of 2025. | [6] | — |
| Oct 30, 2024 | Databento reported 985% revenue growth and more than 7,000 new customers during the prior year. | [5] | — |
| May 11, 2023 | Inc. Magazine named Databento a Best Workplace for 2023. | [4] | — |
| Apr 2023 | Databento publicly launched its pay-as-you-go historical data service. | [4] | — |
| Nov 4, 2021 | Databento won the People's Choice Award at FIA Expo. | [4] | — |
Market
Gabby Munoz of Fitch Group sees financial data becoming more driven by software connections and machine use. She believes this creates room to rethink how institutions access data. [3]
We wrote this summary from public statements by Databento and its investors. It is not investment advice.
Leadership Team
Executive officers and directors listed on Databento's Form D filed Nov 12, 2026.
Earlier filings also listed David Lin (director, last listed Nov 2024).
Sources
- PressDatabento Series B announcement
- CompanyDatabento Series C announcement
- PressDatabento Series C release
- CompanyAbout Databento
- CompanyDatabento Series A+ announcement
- CompanyDatabento strategic investment announcement
- SECDatabento Form D, filed 2026-11-12 · linked above ↑
- SECDatabento Form D, filed 2026-07-09 · linked above ↑
- SECDatabento Form D, filed 2021-11-12
- SECDatabento Form D/A, filed 2024-11-19 · linked above ↑
- SECDatabento Form D, filed 2021-03-18 · linked above ↑
- SECDatabento Form D, filed 2019-08-02 · linked above ↑
- ProfileRick Yang at New Enterprise Associates · linked above ↑
- SECDatabento Inc. filing history