BVNK raises $50M to expand into US stablecoin market

Stablecoin infrastructure company BVNK closed a $50 million Series B funding round led by Haun Ventures, with plans to expand into the United States.

Participants in the round included Coinbase Ventures, Scribble Ventures, DRW VC, and existing investors Avenir and Tiger Global. According to a Dec. 17 announcement, the fresh capital will be used to expand BVNK’s operations to San Francisco and New York City. 

Based in London, BVNK is now estimated to be worth about $750 million. Its US offices will develop a local banking infrastructure and work on operational licenses to serve local companies. 

The round follows a previous $43.2 million funding commitment led by Tiger Global in 2022. At the time, the company had a valuation of roughly $327 million. 

BVNK offers white-label infrastructure to businesses seeking to manage stablecoins payments in-house. It claims to have processed over $10 billion in yearly payment volumes, recording a 200% year-on-year growth. The company is said to be a partner of global stablecoins providers, including PayPal, Circle, and First Digital.

Behind the scenes are South African entrepreneurs Jesse Hemson-Struthers, Donald Jackson and Chris Harmse — all former financial services professionals.

Related: Tether backs European stablecoin firm StablR amid USDT uncertainty

The fintech will compete with established infrastructure providers such as Paxos, Circle and Ripple, to name a few. The company foresees regulatory clarity in the US, such as the potential stablecoin legislation, further validating stablecoins within global financial services.

“Stablecoins represent the most significant infrastructure upgrade to global payments in decades. […] This is the kind of innovation that defines the future of finance,” Haun Ventures general partner Diogo Mónica said in a statement. 

The stablecoin industry is expected to surpass the trillion-dollar mark by 2035, with the US constituting its largest market. According to data from DefiLlama, the sector’s combined market capitalization currently stands at $203 billion.

The past few months have brought more companies into the stablecoin market, with products targeting cross-border remittances and liquidity needs for decentralized finance applications.

Ripple’s stablecoin RLUSD debuted on Dec. 17 after receiving approval from the New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS). 

Related: FSOC warns stablecoins remain a ‘potential risk’ to financial stability