CIT GAP Funds Invests in BCMstrategy to Bring the Data Revolution to Policy Intelligence

Startup quantifies and analyzes public policy activity to help investors make better decisions


Richmond, VA, Oct. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) today announced that CIT GAP Funds has invested in Alexandria, Va.-based BCMstrategy. BCMstrategy uses patented, cutting-edge technology to deliver objective, structured policy momentum data to sophisticated capital markets participants that will help them make better decisions. This funding will be used to develop a Bloomberg Terminal app and expand marketing efforts designed to increase awareness and gain traction in the financial services space.

Policymakers generate more policy signals than any human can track in any 24-hour period. The noise of the news cycle, turbo-charged by social media, increases the velocity of opinion and rumor, making it harder for investors to identify concrete facts to support investment decisions. BCMstrategy is solving this challenge through analytical automation that converts words into numbers without using sentiment analysis. Recent backtests confirm the company’s PolicyScopeTM data delivers signals that anticipate capital market volatility.

“BCMstrategy’s mission is to empower portfolio managers, risk managers, advocates, and journalists to make the best decisions regarding their exposure to shifts in public policy. We know that public policy risks are neither exogenous nor random variables. Now we have the quantitative data to show it,” said Barbara Matthews, Founder and CEO of BCMstrategy. “We are grateful for the support of CIT GAP Funds and look forward to continuing our growth in the financial market!”

BCMstrategy’s key differentiators include the company’s patent for policy risk quantification, and deep expertise on global policy processes. BCMstrategy uses more than 9 layers of patented analytical process automation to generate data on public policy activity. This data is delivered to capital market participants every day for 1000+ lexicon terms, which are mapped to 300+ economic sectors and 9 asset classes. Derivative data, dashboards, alerts and data visualizations are very accessible, available directly from BCMstrategy via API, FTP, S3, SharePoint, email, or on-demand web access. The full dataset is available exclusively on the Bloomberg Enterprise Access Point.

“Founder and CEO Barbara Matthews has a track record of success and leadership not only in public policy, but in global finance as well. She is an experienced innovator who has had multiple successful start-ups, and has built a strong foundation for BCMstrategy,” said Tom Weithman, Managing Director of CIT GAP Funds. “With a recent strategic partnership with Dow Jones and a strategic relationship with Bloomberg, combined with deep subject matter expertise in global policy processes compared to competitors, we are confident that BCMstrategy will make a positive impact on the financial industry.”

About BCMstrategy
BCMstrategy is a technology company that quantifies policy risk daily, using a proprietary patented process. BCMstrategy helps people manage information overload and make better decisions faster through advanced technology that distinguishes between the noise of the daily news cycle and strategically important geopolitical and regulatory policy developments. For more information, please visit https://www.bcmstrategy2.com/.

About CIT GAP Funds
CIT GAP Funds makes seed-stage equity investments in Virginia-based technology, clean energy, and life science companies with a high potential for achieving rapid growth and generating a significant economic return for entrepreneurs, co-investors, and the Commonwealth of Virginia. Since its inception in 2005, CIT GAP Funds has deployed $32.4 million in capital across more than 240 portfolio companies, including 17 companies in designated Opportunity Zones. CIT GAP Funds' investment decisions are guided by the CIT GAP Funds Investment Advisory Board (IAB). This independent, third-party panel has drawn from the expertise of leading regional entrepreneurs, angel, and strategic investors, and venture capital firms such as New Enterprise Associates, Grotech Ventures, Harbert Venture Partners HIG Ventures, Edison Ventures, In-Q-Tel, Intersouth Partners, SJF Ventures, Carilion Health Systems, Johnson & Johnson, General Electric, and Alpha Natural Resources. For more information, please visit https://www.cit.org/gap-investment-funds.html.

About ​the Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority (VIPA)
The Virginia Innovation Partnership Authority (VIPA) was established in 2020 to support the life cycle of innovation, from translational research; to entrepreneurship; to pre-seed and seed-stage funding, as well as acceleration, growth, and commercialization, resulting in the creation of new jobs and company formation. The Authority provides a collaborative, consistent, and consolidated approach that will assist the Commonwealth in identifying its entrepreneurial strengths, including the identification of talents and resources that make the Commonwealth a unique place to grow and attract technology-based businesses. The VIPA, with CIT as its operating arm, brings together components of existing and new program activities in an approach through which the whole is greater than the sum of the individual programs. VIPA's design includes governance and management capabilities to ensure that programs generate transformative and measurable results. For more information, please visit www.cit.org/vipa.

 

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