Texas Stock Exchange Raises $155 Million to Challenge NYSE

TXSE Group Inc. raised $155 million in a third funding round, bringing its total capital to $430 million. The Dallas-based parent company of the Texas Stock Exchange intends to challenge the market dominance of the New York Stock Exchange and the Nasdaq for primary equities listings.

Existing shareholders provided roughly three-quarters of the new capital, while the remaining funds came from unidentified new backers. The exchange has already attracted investment from BlackRock Inc., Citadel Securities, and JPMorgan Chase & Co. It recently secured its first primary listings from Energy Transfer LP and Texas Capital Bancshares Inc., both of which have leadership ties to the exchange.

CEO James Lee described the funding as an "institutional validation" of the demand for a competing exchange. Lee stated that while legacy exchanges are diversifying into fintech, energy markets, and data businesses, TXSE will focus exclusively on being the best exchange operator in the world.