Substantive Research

What Substantive Research does

Substantive Research is a London-based independent research firm founded in 2014 that publishes benchmarking studies on financial data vendor pricing. Its core products are the annual Index, Ratings and Terminals Pricing Inflation Study — produced jointly with BCG Expand since at least 2025 — and the Private Markets Data Fees Study, which collectively quantify pricing inflation, disparities across comparable buyers, and renewal dynamics across index providers, ratings agencies, terminal vendors, and private markets data suppliers. Quantified findings to date include pricing inflation declining from 18% in 2023 to 10% in 2025, up to 13x pricing disparities for similar index products, up to 502% disparities for ratings, and 10-40% renewal increases in private markets data.

The firm sells subscription research to a defined buyer-side audience: financial institutions, asset managers, and data procurement teams that purchase market data from vendors and need independent benchmarking to inform negotiations and budget planning. The company is privately held, has 11-50 employees, and is led by founder and CEO Mike Carrodus with Jonathan Furse as CTO. Capital structure is lean, with a single disclosed funding round of approximately $978,509 from Foresight Group in April 2020, indicating an organic-growth operating model. Distribution is content-led: published reports are amplified through industry media (e.g., tradersmagazine) and the BCG Expand co-marketing channel, positioning the firm as a third-party authority in a market characterized by vendor pricing opacity.

Name

Substantive Research

Website

https://substantiveresearch.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Substantive Research is a London-based independent research firm founded in 2014 that publishes annual benchmarking studies on financial data vendor pricing for institutional buyers, data procurement teams, and private markets participants seeking pricing transparency.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Financial Market Data Research

NAICS

Commodity Contracts Intermediation (52316), Securities, Commodity Contracts, and Other Financial Investments and Related Activities (523), Marketing Research and Public Opinion Polling (541910)

SIC

Commodity Contracts Brokers & Dealers (6221), Investment Advice (6282)

akta.pro primary industry

Industry & Sector Research (Syndicated/Custom) (BPAHALAE)

Keywords

• Market data research
• Pricing benchmark reports
• Financial data analysis
• Vendor pricing research
• Market data intelligence

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Core offering

Substantive Research publishes independent benchmark research on financial market data vendor pricing. Its core deliverables are annual pricing-inflation studies covering index, ratings, and terminal market data (jointly with BCG Expand) and private markets data fees, providing buyers with quantitative evidence to benchmark vendor pricing, negotiate renewals, and plan data budgets.

Product overview

Substantive Research is a research firm that publishes market data pricing studies and industry analyses. The company produces specialized research reports focused on financial data vendor pricing, market data costs, and pricing transparency in the financial services industry. Their core offerings are the annual Index, Ratings and Terminals Pricing Inflation Study (conducted jointly with BCG Expand) and the Private Markets Data Fees Study, both of which analyze pricing disparities, cost inflation, and vendor pricing structures across the market data sector.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Index, Ratings and Terminals Pricing Inflation Study An annual benchmarking study, produced jointly with BCG Expand, that quantifies pricing inflation, pricing disparities across comparable firms, and market data budget growth trends for index providers, ratings agencies, and terminal market data services. Aimed at financial institutions and data procurement teams that need independent evidence to benchmark vendor pricing and inform data spend decisions.
• Private Markets Data Fees Study Research study examining private markets data vendor pricing practices, including renewal increases, pricing power dynamics, and cost growth concerns for asset managers and institutional investors in private markets. Provides independent benchmarking evidence on vendor pricing across private markets data products.

Quantifiable outcome

• Research identified pricing inflation declining from 18% peak in 2023 to 10% in 2025, though still exceeding inflation and budget growth of 5.22%
• +3 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• BCG ExpandcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 12 March 2026Substantive Research and BCG Expand have established an annual joint research initiative focused on financial data vendor pricing analysis. Their second annual joint study, released in March 2026, examined pricing inflation trends across index, ratings, and terminal market data providers. The partnership leverages Substantive Research's market data pricing expertise with BCG Expand's consulting and research capabilities to produce comprehensive industry benchmarking studies.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Burton-Taylor: Burton-Taylor is the closest direct peer to Substantive Research, providing syndicated research, benchmarking, and advisory specifically on the market data and reference data industry, including vendor share, spend, and pricing analysis used by financial data buyers.
• Aite-Novarica Group: Aite-Novarica is a financial services research and advisory firm producing syndicated research and benchmarks used by banks, asset managers, and vendors, with overlapping buyer personas (procurement, strategy, data management) to Substantive Research's financial data buyers.
• Celent: Celent (part of Oliver Wyman) is a financial services research and advisory firm producing vendor selection, benchmark, and technology research consumed by financial institutions, closely mirroring Substantive Research's research-driven business model.
• Tabb Group: Tabb Group is a financial markets research and advisory firm focused on capital markets, trading, and market infrastructure, serving similar institutional buyers who rely on independent research to inform technology and data procurement decisions.
• Opimas: Opimas is a financial services research and consulting firm focused on operations, data, and technology in capital markets, producing syndicated research on data management and market structure that overlaps Substantive Research's coverage of market data vendor economics.
• Coalition Greenwich: Coalition Greenwich (formerly Greenwich Associates, part of CRISIL) produces research and benchmarking used by financial institutions and vendors, with comparable buyer personas (institutional asset managers, sell-side firms) and a similar syndicated research revenue model.
• Chartis Research: Chartis Research provides independent research and advisory on risk, compliance, and data technology for financial services, addressing many of the same institutional buyers and competing for the same independent-research budget line.

Emerging players

• Inside Market Data (formerly TABB/Financial Information Association community): Inside Market Data is a trade publication and research outlet covering the financial information industry, including vendor pricing and market structure topics, with overlap in audience and subject matter but a more editorial than syndicated-research model.

Broad incumbents

• S&P Global Market Intelligence: S&P Global Market Intelligence is a broad incumbent providing financial data, analytics, and benchmark research across markets, offering some overlapping capabilities (market data benchmarking, vendor economics) but as part of a much larger portfolio.
• Forrester Research: Forrester is a large-scale research and advisory firm with broad coverage of technology, data, and financial services buyers, competing for the same procurement and strategy budgets but with a horizontal, multi-vertical scope rather than financial-data specialization.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/substantiveSM

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Substantive Research