Second Foundation

What Second Foundation does

Second Foundation is a Prague-headquartered technology company that originated as one of the largest market makers in European spot power markets and has expanded into battery energy storage system (BESS) ownership and flexibility optimization. Its core technology is a self-developed, low-latency algorithmic trading platform built in Kotlin on JVM, paired with proprietary energy management (EMS) and battery management (BMS) software, a messaging middleware capable of 20 million messages per second with single-digit microsecond RTT, and continuous in-production profiling infrastructure. The platform executes over 100,000 automated trades per day across day-ahead, intraday, and ancillary service markets (FCR, aFRR, mFRR) in 30+ countries on three continents.

The company operates a hybrid business model spanning four revenue streams: (i) market making via bid-ask spreads on European spot markets, (ii) Trading-as-a-Service / flexibility optimization for third-party asset owners through the Nano Energies platform acquired in April 2026, (iii) smart power plant control services for renewable energy operators covering forecasting, dispatching, and pricing, and (iv) ownership and operation of grid-scale BESS assets, currently 110+ MW in operation and 307 MW under development in Czech Republic, plus a 56 MW/180 MWh portfolio acquired from Chint Solar Europe in Germany. BESS assets generated an average of EUR 340,000 per MW in 2025.

Second Foundation serves B2B customers including BESS investors and operators, renewable energy asset owners, cogeneration and biogas plant operators, industrial energy consumers, and transmission system operators. The go-to-market is direct enterprise sales via regional offices in Prague, Berlin, Tokyo, Charlotte (US), Belgium, and Lithuania, supplemented by participation in industry conferences. The company is privately held, founded in 2019, and reports 450+ colleagues worldwide; it issues bonds and has deployed over EUR 160 million of capital into Czech BESS infrastructure, making it the largest private investor in flexible energy assets in the Czech Republic.

Name

Second Foundation

Legal name

Second Foundation Tech a.s.

Website

https://www.second-foundation.eu

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Second Foundation is a Prague-based technology company that combines proprietary low-latency algorithmic trading software with battery energy storage system (BESS) ownership and flexibility optimization, serving BESS investors, renewable energy operators, and TSOs across 30+ European and Asian markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Energy Trading and Flexibility Services

NAICS

Electric Power Generation (22111)

SIC

Cogeneration Services & Small Power Producers (4991)

akta.pro primary industry

BESS Market Participation & Trading Services (Ancillary/Capacity/Arbitrage) (EUAFAAAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Utility-Scale BESS Project Development & Ownership (IPP/Developer) (EUAFAAAA), Energy Management Systems (EMS), SCADA & Dispatch/Optimization Software for Storage (EUAFAAAF), BESS Operations, Maintenance & Asset Performance Management (APM) (EUAFAAAG)

Keywords

• Energy market making
• Algorithmic trading platform
• Battery energy storage
• Flexibility optimization services
• Virtual power plant

Headquarters

HQ city

Prague

HQ country

Czechia

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. BESS Asset Ownership and Operation: Second Foundation develops, owns, and operates battery energy storage systems (BESS), generating revenue through optimization across balancing markets (FCR, aFRR, mFRR), day-ahead market, and intraday market. The company reports battery storage assets generating average annual revenue of EUR 340,000 per MW in 2025. Current portfolio includes 110 MW+ across Czech Republic, Germany, Belgium, Japan, with 307 MW under development in Czech Republic.
2. Trading-as-a-Service / Flexibility Optimization: Provides flexibility optimization and trading services to external power plant operators and BESS owners through Nano Energies platform (recently acquired). Revenue generated through commission or fee arrangement for optimizing customer assets across wholesale and ancillary markets.
3. Market Making in European Spot Markets: As one of the largest market makers in European spot markets, Second Foundation provides liquidity to power markets and generates revenue through bid-ask spreads and market making activities across intraday and day-ahead markets in 30+ countries.
4. Smart Power Plant Control Services: Services for renewable energy owners including trading, forecasting, dispatching, and pricing strategies to maximize returns and provide financial stability, generating revenue through service fees or revenue-sharing arrangements.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Second Foundation is a technology and energy trading company that operates one of the largest market-making operations in European spot power markets through a self-developed low-latency algorithmic trading platform. The company develops, owns, and operates grid-scale battery energy storage systems (BESS) — totaling 110+ MW in operation and 307 MW under development in the Czech Republic — and provides flexibility optimization, smart power plant control, and route-to-market services to external BESS operators, renewable asset owners, and cogeneration plant operators across Europe and Japan.

Product overview

Second Foundation is a technology company with energy trading at its core, operating as both a market maker and flexibility aggregator across European power markets. The company offers a unified platform combining market making services, smart power plant control, and grid balancing through a Virtual Power Plant architecture. Key products include the low-latency Market Making Platform, Smart Power Plant Control services, and Grid Balancing/Virtual Power Plant operations. The company recently expanded into BESS asset ownership and development, while its Nano Energies subsidiary (acquired) provides flexibility optimization for distributed energy assets. The portfolio includes proprietary algorithmic trading executing over 100,000 automated trades daily across ancillary service markets (FCR, aFRR, mFRR), day-ahead, and intraday markets. The company operates across 30+ countries with trading on 3 continents.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Nano Energies: Flexibility optimization platform for energy assets including BESS and cogeneration units
• in.power

Products and services

• Market Making Platform Liquidity provision in European spot power markets through Second Foundation's self-developed low-latency algorithmic platform, executing automated market making across intraday and day-ahead markets in 30+ countries.
• Smart Power Plant Control Trading, forecasting, dispatching, and pricing services for renewable energy owners to maximize returns and integrate solar, wind, and hybrid power plants into European power markets.
• Grid Balancing / Virtual Power Plant Aggregation platform connecting decentralized assets (battery parks, cogeneration units, industrial consumers and producers) to provide grid balancing services and assist transmission systems in preventing fluctuations and blackouts.
• Nano Energies Flexibility Optimization 24/7 dispatch and trading platform for distributed energy assets including BESS and cogeneration units, providing participation in ancillary service markets (FCR, aFRR, mFRR), day-ahead, and intraday markets; operated as a Second Foundation subsidiary brand following the acquisition.
• BESS Route-to-Market Services Route-to-market and trading-as-a-service offering enabling external battery storage owners to access balancing markets and day-ahead/intraday trading through Second Foundation's algorithms and dispatch capability.
• BESS Asset Ownership and Development End-to-end development, ownership, and operation of grid-scale battery energy storage systems, from project development through EPC management, commissioning, and ongoing asset management with in-house optimization.
• German BESS Portfolio (Acquired) Five-project grid-scale BESS portfolio in Germany operated by Second Foundation, spanning Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Brandenburg, with Chint Solar Europe providing EPC and O&M services under long-term contracts.

Quantifiable outcome

• Average annual revenue of EUR 340,000 per MW generated by battery storage assets in portfolio in 2025
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability6 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered notable and core.

• Chint Solar EuropenotableOthers · 10 June 2026Sold 56-MW/180 MWh BESS portfolio to Second Foundation. Chint Solar will build and maintain the assets under EPC and O&M contracts across Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Brandenburg. This is Second Foundation's first BESS portfolio acquisition in Germany.
• GAZ EnergycoreTechnology or Integration · 22 April 2026Technology partner and battery system supplier for BESS projects. Czech manufacturer of industrial battery storage systems with manufacturing facility in Bohumín. Currently producing systems for European projects with combined capacity of 1,500 MWh, many developed in partnership with Second Foundation. GAZ Energy systems equipped with proprietary EMS and BMS software developed by Second Foundation, ensuring full control over data and operations.
• Active Development Investment (ADI)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 April 2026Czech developer partner for Tušimice BESS project. Developed substation and project; has extensive experience in energy and renewables, including one of first companies in Czech Republic to prepare and deliver large-scale wind and photovoltaic plants. Holds ongoing role in project execution.
• Decci GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 April 2026Partner in BESS Vraňany project, located adjacent to Decci's Energy Nest hybrid power complex in Mělník district. Second Foundation holds ownership stake alongside Decci Group. Decci previously commissioned largest battery storage facility in Czech Republic as part of Energy Nest, and technical/commercial flexibility experience is being applied to BESS Vraňany.
• Nano EnergiescoreTechnology or Integration · 22 April 2026Flexibility optimization leader with 16 years of operational track record, recently acquired by Second Foundation group. Provides in-house optimization capability for BESS projects through fully automated trading across ancillary service markets (FCR, aFRR, mFRR), day-ahead market, and intraday market.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Fluence Energy: Fluence is a publicly listed global BESS integrator and asset operator with its own optimization software (Mosaic), offering both hardware-integrated solutions and energy storage services. Like Second Foundation, it operates across European and global markets with a vertically integrated asset-plus-software model, but at materially larger scale and with hardware manufacturing partnerships.
• Stem (now part of AlsoEnergy under Siemens): Stem provides AI-driven energy storage optimization and trading services for BESS and distributed energy assets, now part of Siemens. It competes with Second Foundation's optimization-as-a-service offering for third-party BESS operators and shares the algorithmic trading and ML forecasting approach.
• EDF Renewables / EDF Trading: EDF Trading operates as one of Europe's largest energy market makers and BESS asset developers, with significant intraday and ancillary service trading capabilities. A broad incumbent comparable to Second Foundation's combined market making + asset ownership franchise, though EDF operates at materially larger scale and with broader geographic reach.
• RWE Supply & Trading: RWE Supply & Trading is one of Europe's largest energy trading houses and a major BESS asset developer, with proprietary trading platforms and flexibility optimization capabilities. Comparable to Second Foundation's market making and BESS trading franchise, though RWE operates at vastly greater scale as part of the integrated RWE utility group.
• Lightsource bp: Lightsource bp is a global solar and BESS developer/operator active in European flexibility markets with in-house optimization and trading capabilities. Comparable to Second Foundation's renewable asset optimization and BESS route-to-market offering, though primarily focused on solar-plus-storage hybrid projects at utility scale.

Direct peers

• NODES: NODES is a Nordic flexibility market platform operator providing market access and trading for distributed energy assets including BESS across European balancing markets. It is a direct peer to Second Foundation's Trading-as-a-Service / market making franchise, serving similar BESS and renewable asset owners with flexibility aggregation.
• Ylem Energy: Ylem Energy is a flexibility aggregator and BESS optimizer operating across European balancing markets, providing trading and ancillary services to storage asset owners. Direct peer to Second Foundation's Nano Energies brand with comparable focus on FCR/aFRR markets and BESS route-to-market services.

Regional players

• Enertrag: Enertrag is a German renewable energy and BESS developer/operator with focus on wind, solar, and hybrid storage projects in Germany and Central Europe. Regional peer to Second Foundation's German BESS expansion and Czech/German development pipeline.

Emerging players

• Sonnen (Shell subsidiary): Sonnen is a residential and commercial BESS manufacturer and VPP operator now owned by Shell, with European flexibility market participation. Overlaps with Second Foundation's VPP / grid balancing offering at the distributed energy asset aggregation layer, though focused on smaller behind-the-meter assets.
• Tibber: Tibber is a European digital energy retailer that actively trades flexibility and integrates distributed energy assets including BESS into virtual power plants. Comparable to Second Foundation's flexibility optimization and grid balancing franchise at a smaller scale, with growing focus on retail-facing energy services.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/secondfoundation

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Subsidiaries7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A1 record

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Second Foundation