Ninth Wave
Ninth Wave is a New York-based open finance connectivity platform founded in 2018, serving 2,000+ financial institutions and 120M+ accounts with FDX-certified APIs, embedded ERP integrations, and managed services for retail, commercial, and wealth management clients.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2018
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Ninth Wave does
Ninth Wave is a New York-based open finance connectivity platform founded in 2018 as a spin-out of Enterprise Engineering, Inc. The company provides financial institutions — including retail banks, commercial banks, wealth managers, credit card issuers, tax/payroll providers, and credit unions — with secure, FDX-certified APIs and OAuth 2.0-based data sharing infrastructure that replaces screen scraping with credential-free, tokenized access. Its platform connects 120 million+ accounts across 2,000+ financial institutions and is trusted by 8 of the top 10 U.S. wealth managers and 7 of the top 10 U.S. banks.\n\nThe product architecture centers on a Platform Hub with three core products (Ninth Wave Connect for open banking APIs, Ninth Wave Direct for embedded finance into ERP/accounting platforms, and Ninth Wave 360 for wealth-management data acquisition) plus three modules (Ninth Wave Portal for monitoring and monetization, Managed Services for Plan-Build-Operate implementation, and Compass, an AI-driven onboarding assistant). Ninth Wave's core technology is protocol-agnostic and supports 20+ years of financial data standards expertise, with native integrations into NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics 365, Workday, QuickBooks, Xero, Sage, and Quicken. The company maintains SOC 2 Type I/II and PCI DSS infrastructure and is positioned for CFPB Dodd-Frank Section 1033 compliance.\n\nNinth Wave generates revenue through platform subscriptions, usage-based API access, and managed services, sold via direct enterprise field sales augmented by channel partnerships with core banking and digital banking platform providers (Backbase, Candescent, Narmi, Q2). The company received growth financing from Level Structured Capital (an affiliate of Level Equity) in September 2024 to expand its commercial team amid accelerating U.S. open banking regulation.
Ninth Wave firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Ninth Wave
- Legal name
- Ninth Wave Inc.
- Website
- https://ninth-wave.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2018
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Ninth Wave is a New York-based open finance connectivity platform founded in 2018, serving 2,000+ financial institutions and 120M+ accounts with FDX-certified APIs, embedded ERP integrations, and managed services for retail, commercial, and wealth management clients.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Ninth Wave industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Open Finance Software Platform
- NAICS
- Other Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (522390)
- SIC
- Finance Services (6199)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Account Aggregation & Connectivity (Multi-bank linking) (FSAGACAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Customer Permissioning & Consent Management (OAuth, scopes, revocation) (FSAGACAC), Identity & Authentication for Open Banking (SCA support, token exchange) (FSAGACAF), Open Finance Expansion (investments, pensions, insurance, utilities data) (FSAGACAK)
Keywords
Where Ninth Wave is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Ninth Wave business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Platform Subscription / SaaS: Subscription-based access to the Ninth Wave Platform providing secure data connectivity infrastructure for financial institutions. Includes API access, portal usage, and ongoing platform maintenance.
- API Usage-Based: Usage-based API access potentially including monetization opportunities for financial institutions seeking to charge for API access to customer banking data (e.g., JPMorgan Chase model from October 2025).
- Managed Services: Professional services for implementation including Plan-Build-Operate lifecycle approach covering discovery engagements, readiness assessments, API enablement, authentication setup, aggregator integration, environment setup, UAT, and ongoing operational support. Launch timeline: under 90 days.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Managed Services for Open Finance deployment |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels5 records
Ninth Wave product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Ninth Wave provides an open finance connectivity platform that enables financial institutions to securely share customer-permissioned financial data with third-party applications through FDX-certified APIs and OAuth 2.0 three-legged authentication, replacing screen scraping. Its product suite spans the Connect open banking API, Direct embedded integrations into accounting/ERP systems, the 360 wealth management data hub, the Portal for monitoring and monetization, and Compass, an AI-driven onboarding assistant.
Product overview
Ninth Wave offers a platform-plus-modules architecture centered on its Open Finance Hub, which connects over 120 million accounts through secure, reliable API-based links to the open finance ecosystem. The core platform is composed of three interconnected products: Ninth Wave Connect (the foundational open banking API for secure data sharing), Ninth Wave Direct (embedded finance integrations into business applications), and Ninth Wave 360 (wealth management data acquisition). Supporting modules include the Portal (for monetization and monitoring), Managed Services (for implementation and operations), and Compass (AI-driven onboarding assistant). The platform serves financial institutions across retail banking, business banking, wealth management, credit card issuers, and tax services.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Ninth Wave Connect: Open banking API for secure data sharing, enabling financial institutions to share customer financial data with third-party applications.
- Ninth Wave Direct
- Ninth Wave 360
- Ninth Wave Portal
- Ninth Wave Compass
- Ninth Wave Virtual Custodian
Products and services
- Ninth Wave Platform Central open finance hub providing secure, scalable connectivity between financial institutions and third-party applications including fintechs, aggregators, accounting solutions, and tax preparation software; single integration point for all external data-sharing traffic with over 120 million accounts connected.
- Ninth Wave Connect FDX-certified open banking API for financial institutions enabling consumer and business customers to securely share financial data with third-party applications via OAuth 2.0 three-legged authentication, eliminating screen scraping by replacing credential-based connections with a permissioned API layer.
- Ninth Wave Direct Embedded finance solution extending data sharing through native two-way integrations into top accounting systems and ERP platforms (Oracle NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central, Workday Financial Management, Intuit QuickBooks, Xero, Sage, Quicken), enabling payment initiation, balance visibility, and reconciliation directly within business applications.
- Ninth Wave 360 Wealth management data acquisition solution providing consolidated financial views of client portfolios. Combines direct custodial data feeds (BNY Mellon, Pershing, State Street, Northern Trust, Charles Schwab, Morgan Stanley), API connectivity, and data aggregation across deposit, investment, real estate, insurance, and alternative assets.
- Ninth Wave Portal Next-generation monitoring, management, and monetization platform for open finance traffic featuring analytics and intelligence dashboards, Fintech Registry for security management, Security Center for threat detection, and Access Management controls; enables financial institutions to measure data usage and monetize fintech relationships.
- Managed Services Professional services offering a Plan.Build.Operate lifecycle approach for open finance implementation, including discovery engagements, readiness assessments, API enablement, authentication setup, aggregator integration, cloud architecture deployment, environment setup, UAT, real-time monitoring, and ongoing support for third-party ecosystem.
- Compass AI-driven onboarding assistant that analyzes and tests bank APIs, identifies gaps and inconsistencies with open finance standards, and generates detailed mapping guides; includes intelligent documentation agents that answer natural language API questions for technical onboarding support.
Quantifiable outcome
- Financial institutions report 4.6% additional annual revenue opportunity from open finance data access that is currently missed due to consumer data permission limitations
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Ninth Wave
Customer profileNamed customers4 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Ninth Wave technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration8 records
AI capability7 records
Feature7 records
Ninth Wave partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.
- BackbasecoreStrategic partnership to enable banks to offer seamless connections between corporate clients' ERP/accounting systems and their banking data. Joint solution uses API-first connectivity layer to manage consent, activity logs, and governance within a single platform, facilitating real-time data transfer with integrated compliance controls. Plans include expanding ERP features to support multi-country corporate payments and real-time cash management dashboards for global enterprises.
- NarmisecondaryPartnership to deliver open finance capabilities to community banks and credit unions through Narmi's digital banking technology platform.
- CandescentcoreExtended strategic partnership enabling financial institutions of all sizes to leverage modern APIs for secure, consumer-permissioned data sharing through Candescent's digital banking platform. Supports 250+ banks and credit unions with secure embedded finance integrations. Candescent Open Data Solutions with Ninth Wave provides high transparency and control while supporting regulatory compliance with Personal Financial Data Rights and CFPB Rule 1033.
- Q2secondaryIntegration with Q2's Digital Banking Platform enabling financial institutions to provide Ninth Wave's secure embedded finance integrations to customers through Q2's platform.
- Cornerstone AdvisorssecondaryJoint research partnership producing industry reports on open banking and open finance revenue opportunities for financial institutions. Commissioned reports identifying six monetization opportunities and quantifying 4.6% revenue gap from data access limitations.
- MastercardsecondaryCollaborative research partnership producing industry reports on open banking and open finance revenue generation for financial institutions alongside Cornerstone Advisors and Ninth Wave.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights2 records
Ninth Wave competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Plaid: Plaid is the largest U.S. open banking connectivity platform, providing API-based account linking and financial data sharing between consumers' bank accounts and third-party applications. It is the most direct competitor to Ninth Wave Connect in serving fintechs, aggregators, and FIs.
- Finicity (Mastercard): Finicity is a financial data aggregation and open banking platform acquired by Mastercard for ~$1B. It offers FDX-aligned APIs, consumer-permissioned data sharing, and balance/commercial aggregation services, overlapping directly with Ninth Wave's platform offerings.
- MX: MX Technologies provides account aggregation, financial data connectivity, and money management experiences for financial institutions and fintechs. It competes head-to-head with Ninth Wave in providing consumer-permissioned data sharing and PFM connectivity for banks and credit unions.
- Akoya: Akoya is a data-access network that enables secure, permissioned financial data sharing between financial institutions and third parties under consumer-consent frameworks. It competes directly with Ninth Wave in the FDX-aligned, FI-controlled connectivity layer for U.S. open finance.
- Yodlee (Envestnet): Yodlee is one of the longest-established account-aggregation and financial data platforms, serving banks, fintechs, and wealth managers with screen-scraping and API connectivity. It is a direct competitor across retail, wealth, and small-business data aggregation.
Emerging players
- TrueLayer: TrueLayer is a leading European open banking API platform offering account information and payment initiation services. While primarily UK/EU focused, its FDX-aligned approach and FI-direct model make it a relevant comparable for Ninth Wave's open-finance connectivity stack.
Broad incumbents
- Jack Henry (Banno): Jack Henry is a major U.S. core banking and digital banking platform provider whose Banno digital platform increasingly embeds open-banking and data-sharing capabilities for community banks and credit unions — overlapping with Ninth Wave's core FI customer segment.
- FIS: FIS is a global financial technology incumbent offering core banking, payments, and data aggregation (formerly via Yodlee's enterprise use cases) solutions to large banks. Its broad portfolio competes with Ninth Wave at the enterprise FI tier, particularly in wealth and commercial banking connectivity.
- Fiserv: Fiserv is a major U.S. fintech infrastructure provider offering core banking, merchant, and digital banking solutions. Its enterprise banking platform increasingly embeds open finance and API connectivity capabilities, competing with Ninth Wave at large-FI tier.
- Q2: Q2 is a leading U.S. digital banking platform provider for community and regional banks/credit unions. It is both a current channel partner of Ninth Wave and a potential competitor as it expands embedded open-finance and API connectivity capabilities for its FI customers.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat7 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Ninth Wave social profiles
Digital presenceNinth Wave compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance5 records
Ninth Wave financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Ninth Wave leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles15 records
Ninth Wave funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors2 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Ninth Wave M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Ninth Wave
What does Ninth Wave do?
Ninth Wave provides an open finance connectivity platform that enables financial institutions to securely share customer-permissioned financial data with third-party applications through FDX-certified APIs and OAuth 2.0 three-legged authentication, replacing screen scraping. Its product suite spans the Connect open banking API, Direct embedded integrations into accounting/ERP systems, the 360 wealth management data hub, the Portal for monitoring and monetization, and Compass, an AI-driven onboarding assistant.
Is Ninth Wave a public or private company?
Ninth Wave is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Ninth Wave founded?
Ninth Wave was founded in 2018. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Ninth Wave based?
Ninth Wave is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does Ninth Wave make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Platform Subscription / SaaS are the primary driver. The others are API Usage-Based and managed Services.
Who are Ninth Wave's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Plaid, Finicity (Mastercard), MX, Akoya and Yodlee (Envestnet). TrueLayer is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are Jack Henry (Banno), FIS, Fiserv and Q2.
Does Ninth Wave have an API?
Yes. Ninth Wave offers FDX-certified open finance APIs for secure financial data sharing. The API supports three-legged OAuth 2.0 authentication with integration to FI identity management platforms, dynamic client registration (DCR) for TPPs, and FDX standard protocols. The Developer Portal provides sandbox environments and documentation for fintech and aggregator access. Additional authentication methods include mTLS, OpenID Connect, FAPI, and enterprise SSO. The platform uses JWT and JSON schema exchange for secure API communication. Developer documentation is at developer.ninth-wave.com.
What industry is Ninth Wave in?
Ninth Wave's product category is Open Finance Software Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAGACAA, Account Aggregation & Connectivity (Multi-bank linking), with a secondary code of FSAGACAC, Customer Permissioning & Consent Management (OAuth, scopes, revocation). Its NAICS code is 522390 and its SIC code is 6199.