(Bloomberg) -- Perseus Inc., a Goldman Sachs Group Inc.-backed firm that runs a high-speed network used by some of the fastest traders to zoom orders across continents, said it was just sold for $39.5 million.
GTT Communications Inc. was the buyer, according to Jock Percy, the chief executive officer of New York-based Perseus. GTT spokesman Randy Slack declined to comment.
Modern trading in markets like stocks and futures is measured in millionths of a second, meaning the fastest traders require the fastest infrastructure possible. Some like Jump Trading LLC build their own microwave networks to meet that need, while others rely on third parties like Perseus and McKay Brothers LLC. Perseus doesn’t just serve players in financial markets; it also offers connectivity around the world to industries including media and digital commerce.
This isn’t GTT’s first foray into speedy trading. In January, the McLean, Virginia-based provider of networking services completed a $607 million purchase of Hibernia Networks, which has a transatlantic fiber-optic communications network it was pitching to traders and other customers.
Percy said in an interview that Perseus went up for sale at the end of last year. Goldman Sachs had purchased a $20.5 million stake in 2015.
“It was a competitive process,” Percy said. “GTT as a financial service provider has become a very significant powerhouse.”
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