The problem
Tech, defense and crypto companies lost their go-to bank with SVB and get turned away or underserved by big banks
What they do
Federally chartered digital bank for AI, defense, crypto and advanced-manufacturing companies
Traction Deposits $1.1B (Mar) to $7B+ (Oct 2026); ~$112M annualized revenue Jul 2026 (Sacra est.)
Hiring trend
- Open roles
- 0
- Headcount
- ~120-145 (est.)
Growing: ~90 FTE (Jun 2026 call report) to ~116-145 (LinkedIn/TipRanks, Oct 2026); 0 public postings
Latest news
Oct 2026
Deposits passed $7B eight months after opening; still raising ~$1.5B at $8B pre-money ↗Funding
- Last round
- $350M
- Stage
- Series A
- Date
- Dec 2025
Led by Lux Capital
- Hiring00 open roles on the live job board (no roles = 0)
- Funding recency+1.5Series A · $350M, Dec 2025 (10 months ago): 6–12 months = +1, $100M+ round +0.5
- Traction+1.5Strong growth: Deposits $1.1B (Mar) to $7B+ (Oct 2026); ~$112M annualized revenue Jul 2026 (Sacra est.)
- Red flags−11 significant flag in the last 24 months, −1 eachSenate Banking ranking member Warren probing whether its fast charter approval was a political favor (letters Feb and Apr 2026; urges termination if improper). Also: Sep 2026 free stablecoin-redemption offer was arbitraged by Wintermute and Galaxy, forcing fees and limits (risk-control lapse, not scored).Senate Banking (Warren), Apr 23 2026: probe of Erebor charter approval and fundraising memo ↗ · Warren letter to Erebor, Feb 25 2026 (risky plan; CRO left before opening) ↗ · BeInCrypto via CryptoRank, Sep 16 2026: free stablecoin plan exploited by traders ↗ · The Last Daily, Oct 6 2026: stablecoin retreat and OCC/FDIC de novo conditions ↗
- Total2.00 + 1.5 + 1.5 − 1 = 2.0 → Steady (1.5–3.49)
Distance (Half) is a separate read on how long the lead can last. It doesn't change the score.
Distance
Half · edge: hard to leave
Owns a hard-to-get national charter and has the fastest de novo deposit ramp on record ($7B+ in 8 months), making it the leading insured bank for crypto/defense/AI tech; but it trails Mercury and big incumbents in startup banking broadly, and deposits are concentrated in ~500-600 large accounts amid political and regulatory scrutiny
Sources: Sacra: ~$112M annualized revenue Jul 2026; ~500-600 customers; vs Mercury $650M, Column, Lead Bank ↗ · Crowdfund Insider (FT), Oct 2026: $7B+ deposits ↗ · The Last Daily, Oct 2026: Q2 call report $4.66B assets, $4.06B deposits, $597M equity; 12% leverage floor ↗
Watch-outs
Senate Banking ranking member Warren probing whether its fast charter approval was a political favor (letters Feb and Apr 2026; urges termination if improper). Also: Sep 2026 free stablecoin-redemption offer was arbitraged by Wintermute and Galaxy, forcing fees and limits (risk-control lapse, not scored).
Sources: Senate Banking (Warren), Apr 23 2026: probe of Erebor charter approval and fundraising memo ↗ · Warren letter to Erebor, Feb 25 2026 (risky plan; CRO left before opening) ↗ · BeInCrypto via CryptoRank, Sep 16 2026: free stablecoin plan exploited by traders ↗ · The Last Daily, Oct 6 2026: stablecoin retreat and OCC/FDIC de novo conditions ↗
Open ops roles
No ops roles open right now
Last checked Oct 25, 2026