Mastercard Acquisition of BVNK Validates Concentric’s Conviction-Led Investment Approach

London, 3 August 2026: Mastercard’s acquisition of BVNK marks the culmination of an almost eight-year partnership between the payments infrastructure company and venture firm Concentric, which first backed co-founders Jesse Hemson-Struthers, Donald Jackson and Chris Harmse in 2018 after identifying an exceptional founding team building the next generation of global payments infrastructure.

Concentric invested years before stablecoins became a strategic priority for the world’s largest banks and payments companies, believing the technology could transform the infrastructure underpinning global payments. BVNK formed part of a broader investment thesis around the future of global payments infrastructure, with Concentric also backing companies including Koywe, Fipto and Noah as stablecoin payments evolved from a niche technology into a strategic priority for financial institutions.

For Concentric, this outcome is the result of backing the right team in the right sector, maintaining conviction throughout the journey, and working alongside the founders as the business scaled.

Kjartan Rist, co-founder and Managing Partner at Concentric, said: “When we first invested, stablecoins were far from the financial mainstream. What we saw was a much bigger opportunity to rebuild the infrastructure behind global payments and a founding team capable of doing it. From the outset, our ambition was to be more than a source of capital. We worked alongside Jesse and the team as a long-term partner, supporting the business through every stage of its growth while maintaining our conviction throughout. Mastercard’s acquisition is an exceptional outcome for BVNK, and we believe it demonstrates what can be achieved when exceptional founders are backed with long-term conviction and active company building.”

The firm led BVNK’s first two funding rounds, investing initially at a €4 million valuation before doubling down three years later at an €80 million valuation, and participated in every subsequent financing while maintaining its conviction throughout the company’s growth. Unlike many early investors, Concentric did not sell a single share before the acquisition, reflecting its long-term conviction in the founders, strategy and opportunity.

About Concentric

Concentric is a European venture capital firm that backs exceptional founders building category-defining technology companies. Since 2013, it has invested across financial infrastructure, enterprise software, industrial technology and healthcare, developing a leading thesis in global payments and stablecoin infrastructure through investments including BVNK, Koywe, Fipto and Noah. Concentric partners closely with founders from the earliest stages, combining long-term conviction with hands-on company building. https://concentric.vc/