Today, Brex and @CapitalOne are announcing the largest bank-fintech deal in history for $5.15B, joining forces to build the most important financial platform for businesses in the US.
We started Brex in 2017 by inventing a new category of company that brings together financial services and software into one platform. Our vision clearly resonated: Brex serves tens of thousands of businesses today, from 1 in 3 startups in the US, to some of the most important enterprises on the planet.
Brex and Capital One share similar journeys. Rich Fairbank founded Capital One 30 years ago, and continues to lead the company today as CEO. Capital One pioneered the concept of fintech bringing data and technology to financial services, and scaled to become the 6th largest bank and the 3rd largest credit card provider in the US.
This combination is unlike any other bank M&A in history. This story is about growth acceleration, and two founder-led companies coming together to bring a better way to manage money to millions of businesses in the mainstream US economy, who are dramatically underserved by traditional banks.
Upon regulatory approvals and closing of this deal, Brex will become part of Capital One. I will continue to lead Brex as founder/CEO, and things will only get better for customers. By combining Brex’s product, technology and customer experience with Capital One’s scale, brand, balance sheet, and long-term investment mindset, we’ll be able to move faster, invest more deeply, and bring more powerful capabilities to businesses than either of us could alone.
Almost exactly two years ago, we embarked on the journey of reaccelerating growth with Brex 3.0. Perhaps the most special part of today is realizing it was all worth it. Not only did we succeed in making Brex an exceptional company again, but in doing so, we earned the right to forever cement Brex’s place in the US financial system and continue transforming how businesses manage their money for decades to come.
I’m a builder at heart, and nothing is more rewarding for a builder than to watch their creation outscale and outlast your wildest dreams. Building Brex has been the proudest accomplishment of my life. I am so grateful to everyone at Brex, our customers, investors, advisors, ex-employees, mentors, my wife, family and friends who helped us get here.
I believe the years ahead scaling Brex in this unique setup will be the most impactful years of my career. I am so grateful to Rich and the Capital One team for giving us the opportunity to play this game at an unprecedented level of scale and ambition.
We started Brex with the idea of Dreaming Big, and I’m so excited to work with Capital One on a dream that’s bigger than it's ever been. Onwards!
https://www.brex.com/journal/brex-and-capital-one-join-forces