Estimize
The (growing) Estimize team on vacation together earlier this year.
Estimize CEO Leigh Drogen announced at the 2015 Benzinga Fintech Awards on Wednesday that the startup had raised $3 million in its Series B round of funding. That's on top of the $2.4 million raised in its Series A round.
"We really think that there's this momentum behind crowdsourced finance right now and that it's at some point going to usurp the traditional ways that you access financial data," said spokesperson Christine Short.
"We think that the space in general has a lot of potential and we're just trying to fulfill our role there."
Leading the round was angel investment firm WorldQuant Ventures, which did not invest in the Series A round but was the company's first client back in 2012.
"It means a lot to us that we're sort of being validated now by our clients that are using the data are now becoming investors," said Short.
Other investors were Bob Greene of Contour Venture Partners, who had also invested in the Series A round, as well as a handful of new investors, including:
- Ross Garon, the head of Point72's quant fund, Cubist Systematic
- Frank Sica of Tailwind Capital and formerly of Soros Fund
- Brian Finn, President of Credit Suisse First Boston
- Jarrod Yuster, CEO of Pico Trading
- Peter Nesvold of Silver Lane Advisors
- Agilic Partners
Estimize, which aggregates earnings and revenues from some 6,000 Wall Street pros, has a number of new premium features in the pipeline.
One feature will allow users to view a select consensus of highly rated, historically accurate contributors. Another will highlight notable estimates from contributors who are normally on point but who fall out of consensus on specific calls. They're also developing a new filter option.
But before the company can roll out those premium features, they first need to hire more talent. Short said they're currently hiring in the front end, back end, marketing, and sales departments.