A local developer of software for the energy- and commodity-trading industry nabbed new growth funding.
Houston-based Molecule announced the close of a $12 million Series A funding round on May 6. Molecule develops cloud-based software offerings for commodity traders, risk managers, hedge funds, private equity firms, energy informatics companies and other customers that trade power, gas, crude, refined products, chemicals and agriculture commodities. The company's software products automate market data reporting, position calculations, fund allocation and more. Tens of millions of dollars are traded on Molecule's platform daily, according to the company.
Using the funding, Molecule plans to further develop its software platform focused on power and to build out offerings to manage renewables credits and back-office energy-trading and risk-management functions.
"In 2020, we realized that electricity — the growth commodity of the 2020s — represented over half of Molecule's customer base, and we decided to double down," said Sameer Soleja, founder and CEO of Molecule. "We were also rated the No. 1 [software-as-a-service] [energy and commodity trading risk-management] vendor. With this fundraise, we have the fuel to become No. 1 SaaS platform for power and renewables and then the market leader overall. Molecule is ready to power the energy transition."
Molecule said the investors that contributed to its Series A round include Houston-based Mercury Fund, one of the oldest and most active early-stage venture capital firms in the Houston metro region. Mercury Fund has invested in several Houston-based startups, with recent examples including Cart.com, Graylog, WizeHire, Topl and other tech-focused firms.
"We led the seed round of Molecule upon their formation and are excited to participate in their Series A," said Blair Garrou, co-founder and managing partner at Mercury Fund. "Molecule's success in the ETRM/CTRM industry, especially in relation to electricity and renewables, positions them as the company to beat for the energy transition in the 2020s."
Molecule was founded in 2012.
