JPM, others fund cap markets fintech startup

JPMorgan Chase is among a group of investors pouring $15 million into a capital markets technology firm that offers an operating layer so disparate legacy systems can talk to each other.

OpenFin announced the Series B funding round on Thursday. The other investors included Bain Capital Ventures, DRW Venture Capital, NEX Group’s fintech investment business Euclid Opportunities, Nyca Partners and Pivot Investment Partners. OpenFin's existing angel investors and other backers also participated in the round.

The startup’s commitment to open source technology has brought it success, Sanoke Viswanathan, chief administrative officer at JPMorgan's corporate and investment bank, said in a press release.

“Some of the most successful tech companies are combining proprietary technology aimed at fueling business growth with an open source, shared technology framework that gets better with contributions from the broader community,” Viswanathan said.

OpenFin, which has dual headquarters in New York and London, provides a common operating layer for trading software, data programs, news and research functions. Essentially, the layer is designed to allow companies to overcome the legacy technology issues that delay integration and upgrades, compromise security and hamper communication between applications.

Mazy Dar, CEO and co-founder of OpenFin, said his company's mantra is "Move fast. Break nothing" — a twist on the Silicon Valley saying "move fast and break things."

"Our operating environment brings the same rapid innovation cycle to change-resistant capital markets without sacrificing the security and stability,” he said in the press release.

The firm said it works with more than 35 of the largest banks and trading platforms in the world. The additional capital will allow OpenFin to double its staff from 25 to 50, pursue additional clients, add features and improve service for existing clients.