• Founded by Gil Mandelzis, ex-Traiana, and ICAP (now NEX Group) Tom Glocer, ex-CEO of Thomson Reuters, and Igor Teleshevksy, formerly Traiana, Capitolis is a pioneering technology provider for the global capital markets
• $20 million Series A round was led by Index Ventures, with participation from Sequoia Capital
• Prior seed round of $9 million was also led by Sequoia Capital
• Team of 25 based in New York City, London and Tel Aviv

Capitolis, the pioneering technology provider for the capital markets today announces two rounds of financing, a Series A investment of $20 million led by Index Ventures, and a prior $9 million Seed round led by Sequoia Capital.

Capitolis was founded in 2017 by Gil Mandelzis, the former CEO of EBS BrokerTec, part of ICAP plc (now NEX Group plc) and founder of Sequoia-backed Traiana (acquired by ICAP), Tom Glocer, former CEO of Thomson Reuters and Igor Teleshevsky, formerly Executive VP and Head of Technology at Traiana. The company currently has 25 employees in New York City, London and Tel Aviv and is actively growing its team.

Capitolis is designing multiple new products and services to address capital markets constraints, initially in equities and foreign exchange. It will employ Capitolis’ proven expertise in finance, distribution and processing to better connect appropriate capital with the best collaborative solutions to clients all over the world. The company will announce its initial services and products later this year.

Gil Mandelzis, CEO of Capitolis said: “We believe there is a significant and untapped opportunity to better distribute capital through the system which can be unlocked by the appropriate products, skills, experience and focus that Capitolis brings. We have seen a very positive response from our partner banks, institutional investors and clients who understand the benefits of the approach that we are leading. And we have assembled an extraordinarily capable team with a range of skills and talents to help achieve this.”

“Sequoia Capital and Index Ventures have been supportive partners who work with ambitious entrepreneurs, understand technology disruption and most importantly our vision. We’re grateful for their investment which will enable us to further develop our product offering and strengthen our resources to take Capitolis to the next stage in its strategic ambition”, said Gil Mandelzis.

Among those joining Mr. Mandelzis as part of Capitolis’ management team are several executives with decades of experience in financial services including Justin Klug, formerly of Credit Suisse and Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Joseph Tarditi, former Managing Director and Head of US Short Rate Sales at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, and David Lamb, formerly of Morgan Stanley and Citi. The management team also includes financial technology veterans Illit Geller, formerly co-founder and CEO of TradAir and Head of Business Development at Traiana and Ben Tobin, formerly EMEA Sales Director at EBS BrokerTec and previously also at Traiana.

Tom Glocer, Executive Chairman of Capitolis said: “In my long experience in financial markets it is rare to find a company that solves both a focused set of complex capital markets problems and at the same time presents a substantial long-term growth opportunity. We have assembled an exceptional team who bring the perfect capital markets, technology and start-up experience to deliver on this ambition.”

“Capitolis has a bold vision, rethinking the way markets operate,” said Jan Hammer, partner at Index Ventures, a venture capital firm that has backed leading fintech firms including Adyen, Funding Circle, Robinhood and TransferWise. “Capitolis has the potential to have a lasting positive impact on the capital markets, increasing the availability of financing while reducing the associated cost.”

“Gil is the type of founder who can transform industries, and we’re thrilled to be in business with him again,” said Haim Sadger, partner at Sequoia Capital and Capitolis board member, who also invested in Gil’s previous company, Traiana. “We believe Gil’s vision for Capitolis can reshape the capital markets and unlock huge potential.”

Source: Capitolis