Augustus raises $180mn to expand dollar clearing platform

Augustus has raised $180mn in Series B financing to support a platform that gives banks and financial technology companies outside the US access to dollar accounts and payment networks. The company, formerly known as Ivy, said Tuesday that the capital will help it serve customers in Latin America, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

The company describes its model as direct access to dollar accounts and payment rails through a federally chartered bank. For financial institutions that do not hold direct US clearing relationships, such access is often obtained through correspondent banks, which process payments, hold balances and connect clients to systems such as Swift and domestic clearing networks.

Augustus said its platform supports operating accounts and FBO accounts, a structure commonly used to hold funds for the benefit of underlying customers. It also offers named virtual accounts and allows customers to send or receive funds with first parties and third parties through Swift, ACH, SEPA and stablecoins, according to the company’s release.

Chief executive and co-founder Ferdinand Dabitz said in the release that Augustus was started on the view that global distribution of the US dollar was not working well for international financial institutions. The financing, he said, allows the company to continue its plan to provide dollar access to fintechs and banks outside the US.

QED Investors participated in the latest round, according to Augustus. Nigel Morris, QED’s managing partner, said in the company release that fintech competition has not yet significantly changed correspondent banking, leaving international fintechs and banks reliant on incumbent correspondent banks or middleware providers. He said Augustus combines technology with a bank charter to offer a direct dollar clearing platform.

The funding follows a change in identity and regulatory status for the company. PYMNTS reported on May 11 that Ivy had rebranded as Augustus and said it had received conditional approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish a full-service US national bank.

At the time, Augustus said its ambition was to build a clearing bank suited to artificial intelligence and stablecoin-based infrastructure. The company said the existing clearing model relies on older correspondent banking arrangements that are closed for 115 days a year and can take two days to settle.

Stablecoin settlement, when used by financial institutions, can move tokenised dollar value across blockchain networks rather than through only traditional bank messaging and settlement channels. Augustus’ release did not provide a timetable for the rollout of any new services funded by the Series B.

As Ivy, the company raised $20mn in a Series A round in August 2023 to expand its open banking payments network, according to PYMNTS.

This story draws on original reporting from PYMNTS.