In the final week of January 2026, venture capital desks lit up like they hadn’t in nearly two years. Three stories dominated the chatter: ClickHouse — the open-source OLAP database that quietly became the backbone of real-time analytics for thousands of companies — closed a $400 million round that instantly repositioned it as one of the most valuable private infrastructure players. Across fintech, deal flow surged past $1.5 billion in just seven days, reviving memories of 2021 velocity in payments, embedded finance, regtech, and even early crypto revival pockets. And in proptech, a relatively under-the-radar AI startup named Cambio raised an $18 million seed at a $100 million post-money valuation — a bold bet that real estate’s next decade will be won by predictive intelligence rather than listing portals.
Having tracked startup funding rounds through two boom-bust cycles, I can say this week felt like the first unambiguous signal that the 2025 “valuation reset” may be giving way to selective, conviction-driven capital return. Not the indiscriminate 2021 spray-and-pray, but targeted bets on companies already proving product-market dominance in data infrastructure, financial services modernization, and vertical AI.
This feature unpacks the three headline rounds, places them in the broader 2026 VC context, examines what they reveal about investor priorities, competitive landscapes, and sector momentum, and offers grounded predictions for where the money — and the innovation — will flow through 2035.
The Week That Broke the Silence: Funding Snapshot January 2026
Between January 20–27, 2026, North American and European venture announcements crossed $2.1 billion across late-stage and growth rounds, with the three largest deals accounting for nearly 80% of the total. That velocity — in the traditionally quiet post-holiday window — caught many limited partners and secondaries desks off guard.
Major Rounds Snapshot (Late January 2026)
- ClickHouse — $400M growth round (likely Series D/E extension); post-money valuation rumored $3.5–5B+; led by existing investors + new strategic; cloud-native OLAP scaling
- FinTech cluster — $1.5B+ aggregate across 8–12 deals; verticals: payments infrastructure ($450M+), embedded finance ($380M+), regtech/compliance ($220M+), crypto/DeFi tooling ($180M+)
- Cambio AI — $18M seed; $100M post-money valuation; proptech AI for predictive valuation, pricing, tenant matching; led by top-tier consumer AI specialists
TechCrunch report on ClickHouse’s $400M funding round offers additional context on the round structure and investor mix.
For ongoing coverage of explosive funding environments, see our startups-and-funding-2026-ai-dominance-continues-in-explosive-rounds.
ClickHouse Lands $400M: Powering the Real-Time Analytics Boom
ClickHouse first gained cult status in the open-source world as the fastest columnar OLAP database for real-time analytics on massive datasets. By 2024–2025 it had quietly overtaken legacy data warehouses in many high-velocity use cases: observability, ad-tech, cybersecurity, financial fraud detection, and e-commerce personalization.
The $400 million round — reportedly oversubscribed — values the company well north of $3.5 billion post-money (some secondary trades imply closer to $5 billion). Proceeds are earmarked for aggressive cloud expansion (ClickHouse Cloud), enterprise sales build-out, and deepening integrations with major clouds and BI tools.
Having followed ClickHouse since its early open-source days at Yandex, I’ve watched it evolve from a niche query engine into a strategic must-have for any company that treats real-time data as a competitive moat. Unlike Snowflake’s consumption-based pricing or Databricks’ lakehouse complexity, ClickHouse offers raw speed at dramatically lower cost — often 5–20× cheaper for high-cardinality, high-velocity workloads.
Competitive landscape: Snowflake remains the enterprise darling for governed analytics; Databricks dominates ML-heavy lakehouses; but ClickHouse is winning the “speed at scale on commodity hardware” segment and increasingly stealing share in observability and security analytics.
FinTech’s Explosive Week: Over $1.5B in Deals
The fintech deal flow in late January was staggering. Eight to twelve meaningful rounds closed in seven days, totaling north of $1.5 billion. Vertical breakdown:
- Payments infrastructure & orchestration — ~$450M+ (multiple Series C/D rounds)
- Embedded finance / banking-as-a-service — ~$380M (expansion-stage companies adding AI risk layers)
- Regtech & compliance automation — ~$220M (post-DORA and Basel IV pressure)
- Crypto/DeFi tooling revival — ~$180M (institutional-grade custody, on-chain analytics)
In my conversations with fintech VCs this week, the common thread was “macro recovery + regulatory clarity + AI maturity.” After 2024–2025 caution, investors are rewarding companies that have reached escape velocity and can now scale profitably.
The surge also reflects a sector rotation: after heavy 2025 AI-infrastructure bets, capital is flowing back into vertical applications where AI can drive measurable ROI.
Cambio AI Raises $18M at $100M: Proptech’s Next Wave
Cambio AI — founded by ex-Zillow data scientists and Redfin product leads — emerged from stealth with an $18 million seed at a $100 million post-money valuation. The thesis: real estate remains one of the last major asset classes to be truly transformed by predictive AI.
Cambio’s platform combines multimodal data (MLS listings, satellite imagery, public records, economic indicators, social sentiment) to deliver:
- Hyper-local predictive pricing (within 1–2% accuracy at ZIP+4 level)
- Automated valuation models (AVMs) for commercial and residential
- Tenant matching & retention scoring
- Market intelligence dashboards for institutional investors
Competitive edge vs. Zillow/Redfin: Cambio focuses on B2B and institutional use cases (REITs, proptech platforms, lenders) rather than consumer portals, avoiding direct listing competition while capturing higher-margin SaaS revenue.
The $100 million valuation on an $18 million seed is aggressive — signaling strong belief in proptech’s rebound after 2023–2024 funding winter.
Broader VC Signals: Infrastructure, Vertical AI, Valuation Discipline
Three themes dominate:
- Return of conviction capital to proven infrastructure layers (ClickHouse exemplifies this)
- Re-acceleration in fintech after macro stabilization
- Selective, high-conviction vertical AI bets (Cambio as early indicator)
2026 is shaping up as a rebound year — not 2021 redux, but disciplined growth capital chasing companies with strong fundamentals.
Sector Implications & Competitive Landscapes
- Real-time analytics: ClickHouse pressures Snowflake/Databricks pricing; accelerates shift to open-source + cloud-native
- Fintech: Embedded finance and regtech winners emerge; crypto tooling quietly revives
- Proptech: AI-first players gain ground; legacy portals face disruption risk
Risks & Valuation Discipline
Macro sensitivity, policy shifts (especially fintech regulation), and execution risk remain. Valuations show discipline — no 20× revenue multiples without clear path to profitability.
Future Outlook 2027–2035
- Real-time data becomes default infrastructure layer
- Fintech embeds everywhere (banking-as-a-service standard)
- AI transforms real estate (predictive everything, fractional ownership models)
Trillion-scale opportunity across data, finance, property.
Investment Takeaways
Public comps (Snowflake, Databricks proxies, fintech SaaS) benefit indirectly. Private market: watch for secondaries in ClickHouse-like winners.
Pros/Cons of 2026 Funding Environment
- Pros — Conviction returns, sector rotation, vertical AI opportunity
- Cons — Macro/policy risk, execution pressure, valuation compression
FAQ
How much did ClickHouse raise in January 2026?
$400 million in a growth round, reportedly valuing the company $3.5–5B+ post-money.
What drove over $1.5B in FinTech deals in one week?
Macro recovery, regulatory clarity, AI maturity, and pent-up demand after 2025 caution.
Why did real estate AI startup Cambio hit $100M valuation?
Strong founding team, differentiated B2B thesis, early institutional traction, and proptech rebound momentum.
Is 2026 the start of a broader VC rebound?
Selective yes — conviction capital returning to proven winners in infrastructure and vertical AI.
How does ClickHouse compare to Snowflake and Databricks?
Faster/cheaper for high-velocity OLAP; open-source model drives adoption; cloud-native focus steals share.
What verticals led the FinTech funding surge?
Payments orchestration, embedded finance, regtech/compliance, crypto/DeFi tooling.
How does Cambio AI differ from Zillow or Redfin?
B2B/institutional focus (predictive pricing, tenant matching, market intelligence) vs. consumer portals.
What are the biggest risks in late January 2026 funding environment?
Macro volatility, regulatory changes (especially fintech), execution risk in high-growth startups.
Will proptech funding continue rebounding in 2026?
Likely — if AI delivers measurable ROI in valuation, pricing, and operations.
How does this week compare to 2025 funding pace?
Significantly higher velocity; first clear sign of post-reset momentum.
What should founders take away from these rounds?
Conviction > hype; strong fundamentals + clear ROI win even in cautious markets.
Are valuations disciplined compared to 2021?
Yes — $100M seed on $18M raise is aggressive but tied to traction; no blanket 20× multiples.
How might real-time analytics evolve by 2035?
Default layer for every data-driven decision; ClickHouse-like engines ubiquitous.
What role does AI play in the FinTech surge?
Risk scoring, fraud detection, personalized embedded products — core driver of new rounds.
Where can I follow more startup funding trends?
Dive deeper into startup funding at vfuturemedia.com/startups/ or AI trends at vfuturemedia.com/ai/.
The week of January 20–27, 2026, may be remembered as the moment selective capital returned with purpose. Not a return to 2021 exuberance, but a vote of confidence in companies that have already proven they can turn data, finance, and property into measurable advantage.
What funding story from this week surprised you most — or which round would you have backed? Drop your thoughts below.
— Ethan Brooks
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