Plaid

Plaid is a financial technology infrastructure company founded in 2013 by Zach Perret and William Hockey, headquartered in San Francisco, California. The company operates a data network that sits between consumer-facing financial applications and banks, allowing users to securely link their bank accounts and share financial data with third-party apps.

Plaid's core product is an API suite that enables developers to access bank account data, verify account ownership, confirm balances, and initiate payments. Its network connects to thousands of financial institutions across the United States, Canada, and Europe. Notable customers and integrations include Venmo, Robinhood, Coinbase, and a wide range of personal finance, lending, and investment applications. Plaid also offers products such as Identity Verification, Income verification, and Signal, a tool for assessing ACH return risk.

Plaid raised a $425 million Series D round in 2021 at a $13.4 billion valuation, following a terminated $5.3 billion acquisition by Visa that was abandoned in January 2021 after the U.S. Department of Justice filed an antitrust lawsuit. Prior funding rounds include a $250 million Series C in 2019. The company employs roughly 1,000 to 1,500 people and has expanded its product footprint beyond data connectivity into payment initiation and identity verification services.