Capital One agreed on Thursday to buy San Francisco-based Brex for about $5.2 billion in a stock-and-cash deal to expand its business payments and expense-management services. The move aims to help the bank compete with software-driven finance platforms.
The transaction is expected to close in mid-2026 (Ed. note: it remains subject to regulatory approval). According to the Capital One announcement, the terms combine cash and stock consideration.
Richard Fairbank, founder and CEO of Capital One, said “Acquiring Brex accelerates this journey, especially in the business payments marketplace.” The statement framed the deal as strategic growth rather than routine consolidation.
In September 2025, Brex said it would launch native stablecoin payments beginning with USDC, letting customers pay balances, send payments, and accept funds with automatic conversion to U.S. dollars. The Brex announcement described unified management of traditional and stablecoin-backed spending on one platform.
Launched in 2017, Brex began with corporate cards for startups and later added expense management, banking features, and AI-driven tools. As Franceschi wrote, “We started Brex in 2017 by inventing a new category of company that brings together financial services and software into one platform.”
Pedro Franceschi will remain CEO of Brex after the deal closes, the companies said. Capital One did not disclose how Brex’s AI capabilities will be integrated into its commercial banking products.
