Mercury Raises 200 M a t 200Mat5.2B Valuation – AI Startup Boom Drives Growth Amid Fintech Downturn

Mercury, a Fintech company providing banking services to startups, has rAIsed $200millioninaSeriesDfundinground,reachingavaluationof$5.2 billion. This marks a 49% increase from its previous funding round just 14 months ago, representing a notable upswing in a fintech SECtor that has largely faced headwinds. The round was led by prominent venture capital firm TCV, with participation from existing investors including Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz, and Coatue.

CEO Immad Akhund revealed that Mercury has been profitable for four consecutive years, serves over 300,000 customers—accounting for one-third of early-stage startups—and generated $650 million in Annualized Revenue in the third quarter. The Generative AI wave has become a major growth driver: by lowering the bARRiers to entrepreneurship, AI has fueled the creation of a large number of new companies, and Mercury directly benefits as a go-to banking platform for early-stage accounts.

Additionally, Mercury recently received conditional APProval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) and is on track to become a federally regulated bank by 2027. This transition would allow Mercury to retain more of its revenue, expand its lending Operations, join the Zelle instant payment network, and reduce its reliance on partner banks. Akhund noted that Mercury has grown far larger than its sponsor bank, making direct federal oveRSIght a logical step. He also emphasized that unlike its peer Brex, Mercury has no plans to sell itself to a bank. Instead, the company intends to go public and build "a powerful independent brand."