A local FinTech startup emerged out of a two-year stealth mode today, and wants to help financial institutions streamline their business.
Deep Systems, founded by Steve Tumen in 2016, aims to help mitigate the cost and complexity of financial infrastructure and operations by selling IT services, infrastructure development and software to hedge funds, trading firms and financial technology providers.
The startup's services are designed to lower costs for financial firms and reduce the number of operational challenges they face in the industry. Tumen said the startup’s services address 80 percent of common problems financial institutions have to tackle.
“The financial infrastructure space has grown very complicated over the last 15 years,” Tumen said. “There are more and more exchanges, trading venues and regulations.”
Tumen has a long background of working as an operator and investor in the FinTech industry. He’s still an active hedge fund, private equity and venture capital investor. He's also the CEO of the Equitec Group, a Chicago-based proprietary trading firm he founded in 2001.
The announcement of Deep Systems’ official launch today comes on the first day of the Futures Industry Association’s Expo in Chicago, an annual financial trade show that mainly represents the cleared derivatives industry.
“We think Chicago is the right place to launch the company—it’s a vibrant financial community,” Deep Systems' COO Kyle Tuskey said. “We value the community and we’ve been part of it for a long time.”
For the last two years, the Deep Systems team has been working to perfect their offerings. They’ve taken on some clients, but with the official launch, are ready to begin growing.
“We felt it important to work out all the kinks,” Tuskey said. “We’ve gone through the rounds of our first sets of clients, and we’re ready to open up to a broader audience.”
Tuskey declined to share who some of Deep Systems’ clients are or how many they have.
Though there are other local companies that provide software, infrastructure development or IT services to financial institutions, like Trading Technologies International or Enfusion, Tumen says Deep Systems sets itself apart in the market because they offer all three.
Deep Systems employs about 10 people in their Loop offices, and Tumen said there are plans to hire network engineers and project managers next year. The startup is privately funded, but the executives would not disclose their investors or how much capital they’ve raised.
“We’ve got an ample runway,” Tumen said. “I’m not the least bit concerned about it.”
