Overview

Brex is a financial software platform founded in January 2017 by Henrique Dubugras (CEO, born São Paulo 1995) and Pedro Franceschi (Co-CEO, born Rio de Janeiro), who met via Twitter argument in 2012 and previously co-founded Pagar.me (“Stripe of Brazil”). A Y Combinator W17 company, Brex raised over $1.2B at peak $12.3B valuation before announcing acquisition by Capital One for $5.15 billion in January 2026 (pending regulatory approval).

Highlights

Founder story: Met via Twitter argument, built “Stripe of Brazil” as teenagers
Pagar.me background: Successful payments company providing fintech expertise
Real-time underwriting innovation: Business data instead of personal credit, up to 10x higher limits
Brex Empower: Financial software platform for enterprise spend management
Strategic pivot: June 2022 exit from SMB market to focus on enterprise
Capital One acquisition: $5.15B deal (January 2026) pending regulatory approval
“Built for founders, by founders” origin: Evolved to “empower employees” enterprise positioning
Use cases: Corporate cards, expense management, travel, bill pay for enterprises

Founded

January 2017. Founded by Henrique Dubugras (CEO) and Pedro Franceschi (Co-CEO), co-founders of Pagar.me (“Stripe of Brazil”).

Headquarters

San Francisco, California (Y Combinator W17).

Ownership and funding

Acquired Pry Financials. Announced acquisition by Capital One for $5.15B (January 2026, pending regulatory approval). Total funding over $1.2B at peak $12.3B valuation.

Core technology

Brex Empower financial software platform. Real-time underwriting using business data instead of personal credit. Credit limits up to 10x higher than traditional banks.

Market position

Pivoted from startups to enterprise focus (June 2022); exited the SMB market.

Product philosophy

“Built for founders, by founders”, empower employees to make better financial decisions.