Cloud infrastructure fintech Clear Street, which focuses on prime brokerage, has been going from strength to strength in 2023. Its $270m series B funding round is one of the biggest in a year with very difficult funding conditions. To capitalize on the momentum, it’s building an investment bank.
The high paying New York fintech has well over doubled in size over the last two years. Andy Volz, COO of Clear Street, says that “from July 2021 to today, we’ve grown from 170 to around 400, adding people in all different business areas.” It’s far from done, with Volz estimating that within the next two years its headcount will reach “somewhere between the mid-500s to mid-600s.”
The new investment banking division won’t be expanding at quite that pace. Volz expects to add 5-10 people this year, aiming for a 30-person team within 18 months. Clear Street will be starting with a youth focus, as it “plans to hire analysts and associates first.” For those analysts, Volz will initially be looking for some with a few years of experience “then, over time, we would like to add more graduates.”
Volz says Clear Street hasn’t had an issue attracting candidates in the past. Its focus on eliminating the often abhorred legacy technology of finance has caught the eye of those who have “struggled with legacy infrastructure and understood someone needed to step in.” He says most have applied to Clear Street themselves, “either through a direct reach out or referral.”
Banks have made a major commitment to overhauling legacy tech, with JPMorgan, UBS and Deutsche Bank all decommissioning apps en masse. However, the fix is rarely so simple. Volz likens those efforts to “taking the engine out of the airplane while it’s flying.”
The investment banking team isn’t the only thing shaking up Clear Street. It also recently acquired a futures clearing platform, BASIS, by acquiring software development firm React Consulting Services.
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Investment Banking | FORVIS