LSEG strikes deal with Databricks for AI tools

In a bid to bring more AI tools to its customers the London Stock Exchange Group has struck a deal with software company Databricks. Finance workers will be able to add AI agents to their investment analytics, risk management and trading tools, the companies said in a statement.

Traders could cash in on enhanced backtesting, portfolio optimisation, transaction cost analysis, predictive forecasting and algorithmic trading. In addition, AI bots could improve how they check for credit and counterparty risk, LSEG and Databricks said.

Group head of analytics and AI at LSEG, Emily Prince, said the deal would “unlock new levels of intelligence, efficiency and compliance” for financial institutions.

San Francisco-based Databricks platform is used by around 20,000 organisations worldwide, the firms said. LSEG signed a landmark decade-long deal with Microsoft in December 2022, heralding a new era of data, analytics and cloud infrastructure at the group. It was already transitioning into a more financial information led company, primarily through its bumper purchase of Refinitiv the previous year.

In February 2025, LSEG said AI-enhanced products arising from the Microsoft deal would be ready later in the year amidst a “strong pipeline” of interest. Meanwhile LSEG has dropped imagery of its eponymous bourse from group-wide branding as the data and analytics provider’s reliance on equities trading continues to shrink.

Last month, the Group changed the logo on its website, removing a blue coat of arms resembling that of the London Stock Exchange, as well as the bourse’s motto ‘dictum meum pactum’ — Latin for ‘my word is my bond’.

The new design features only LSEG’s initials with no emblem. The LSE’s coal of arms and motto still appear on the exchange’s dedicated website, where it is referred to as “An LSEG business”.

“The London Stock Exchange’s iconic crest will remain part of the LSE’s logo. We have updated LSEG’s brand and have streamlined our logo to improve its legibility on digital platforms”, a spokesperson for LSEG said in a statement.

The 224-year-old exchange received its coat of arms and motto in 1923 from the College of Arms, a royal corporation that grants such emblems in Britain. Its Latin motto is meant to reflect the importance of trust in the financial marketplace. The coat of arms has two crown-wearing griffins, a golden lion and a shield of a red cross and sword. LSEG’s version of the emblem will remain on buildings and event spaces, according to a person familiar with the matter.

Exchanging businesses: Since acquiring data and analytics firm Refinitiv for $27 billion in 2021, equities trading has become a significantly smaller part of LSEG’s business. The group’s data and analytics division has grown to comprise almost half of its revenue.

Meanwhile, its equities unit — includes the LSE — makes up less than 5 per cent.

Under American chief executive David Schwimmer, who joined from Goldman Sachs in 2018, LSEG has transformed into a more Global company with around 27,000 staff across 65 countries.

The strategy had driven a surge in its stock price and given LSEG a £42.6 billion market capitalisation, although the FTSE 100 firm’s shares have slumped in recent months amidst concerns overs its flagship Workspace platform, a software system for financial workers.

LSEG has already shifted its marketing to reflect its broader international presence and additional business lines over the last few years. The LSE’s shrinking contribution to the group’s earnings has led some investors and market participants to suggest LSEG should sell or spin off the exchange.