High-Level Overview
Bloomberg Second Measure is a technology company specializing in data analytics from consumer transaction data, analyzing billions of anonymized purchases to deliver insights on company performance and consumer behavior.[1][2][3] It serves investors and large brands with self-service products for daily tracking of over 5,200 public and private companies, available via Bloomberg Terminal (ALTD and ECAN ) and data feeds, using 8+ years of history with 2-7 day lags.[1][2] The platform solves the problem of intra-quarter visibility into real-time metrics like spend, transactions, unique users, and average transaction price, empowering faster investment decisions amid economic shifts like declining consumer confidence.[1][5]
Founded in 2015 and acquired by Bloomberg in December 2020, it has grown to 62 employees in New York, leveraging tech stacks including Python, Scala, Spark, React, and SQL to process data from 4-8 million U.S. credit/debit card users since 2013.[2][3][5]
Origin Story
Bloomberg Second Measure originated as Second Measure in 2015, focusing on proprietary transaction data analytics from a U.S. consumer panel.[3][5] The idea emerged from the need for timely, granular insights into consumer spending and company performance, filling gaps in traditional reporting with daily-updated data on billions of purchases.[1][2] Early traction came from its unique dataset covering millions of users, enabling real-time exploration for investors and brands, which led to its acquisition by Bloomberg in December 2020, integrating it into the Bloomberg ecosystem for broader reach via the Terminal.[2]
Core Differentiators
- Proprietary Transaction Dataset: Draws from billions of anonymized U.S. consumer purchases (4-8M card users since 2013), mapped to merchants and tickers, tracking dollar spend, transactions, unique users, and average price with a single proprietary normalization method based on active cards.[1][5]
- Timely and Reliable Delivery: Data lags of 2-7 days, updated daily with 8+ years of history on 5,200+ companies, enabling intra-quarter performance tracking unavailable in standard reports.[1][2]
- Investor-Focused Products: Self-service analytics via Bloomberg Terminal and feeds, supporting use cases like investment monitoring and consumer trend analysis (e.g., spending amid tariffs).[1][2]
- Technical Edge: Built on scalable tech like Spark, Scala, Python, and SQL for processing vast datasets, serving brands and firms with de-duplicated, sector-aggregated insights.[3][5]
Role in the Broader Tech Landscape
Bloomberg Second Measure rides the wave of alternative data in fintech and investment research, where transaction-level insights provide a competitive edge over lagging financial reports.[1][2][5] Its timing aligns with rising demand for real-time analytics amid volatile markets, such as 2025's consumer confidence drop due to tariffs and prices, mirroring spending trends across sectors like retail and telecom.[1][5] Market forces like data proliferation from digital payments favor it, as investors seek intra-quarter signals on private companies and consumer shifts (e.g., carrier switching).[5] It influences the ecosystem by democratizing high-quality, normalized data for faster decisions, complementing Bloomberg's dominance and enabling tools like KPI forecasts in underserved verticals.[2][5]
Quick Take & Future Outlook
Next for Bloomberg Second Measure involves expanding coverage—potentially to international markets like Canada/Europe—and integrating adjacent datasets (e.g., eCommerce pricing, real estate metrics) to deepen sector insights.[5] Trends like AI-driven forecasting and granular macro modeling will shape its path, enhancing predictive power for hard-to-track industries.[5] Its influence may evolve by solidifying Bloomberg's alternative data moat, powering more proactive investment amid economic uncertainty, ultimately unlocking transaction data's full potential for decision-making.[1]
