Clara
Clara is a Latin American corporate spend management platform providing AI-powered corporate cards, expense management, bill payment, and digital banking to over 30,000 mid-market and enterprise companies across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2020
- HeadquartersSão Paulo, Brazil
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Clara does
Clara is a Latin American corporate spend management platform that issues corporate credit cards and provides integrated expense management, bill payment, and digital banking services to mid-market and enterprise companies across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. The platform combines physical, virtual, and single-use virtual card numbers issued through a direct Mastercard partnership (making Clara the first non-bank corporate card provider in Latin America), with automated expense reporting, approval workflows, and real-time spend visibility. Underlying technology includes Clara Intelligence, an AI-powered analytics layer that delivers predictive insights, an automated CFO agent, anomaly detection, and a recommendation engine for identifying duplicate subscriptions, fee changes, and cost-saving opportunities across the $15B+ in annual transaction volume processed.
The company monetizes through a multi-stream revenue model spanning corporate card fees (including R$799 annual Black card fees, interchange, and transaction fees), tiered SaaS subscriptions (Starter free, Pro at R$999/month, Enterprise with custom pricing), interest income from credit facilities offering up to 40 days of financing, CDI-linked yield on account balances (up to 110% of CDI in Brazil), and processing fees on bill payment services. Go-to-market is sales-led, targeting C-suite and finance directors at growing companies via dedicated account managers, with a direct digital sales motion, mobile app distribution, and native integrations into SAP Concur, Oracle NetSuite, Microsoft Dynamics, QuickBooks, Omie, Sankhya Om, and Zoho Expense serving as embedded distribution channels. Strategic partnerships with Sumsub (KYC/AML), Bitso Business (stablecoin-backed cards), Mastercard, Goldman Sachs (debt facility), BBVA Spark, IFC, and Covalto provide capital and infrastructure scale.
Founded in 2020 by Gerry Giacomán Colyer and Diego Iván García, Clara achieved unicorn status at a $1B valuation in December 2021, ranked as the second fastest-growing company in the Americas by the Financial Times in 2025 and 2026, and serves over 30,000 companies including Hilton, Toyota, Femsa, Burger King, Magalu, VTEX, New Balance, the Mexican Stock Exchange, and Smart Fit. The company has raised over $250M in debt capacity alongside equity rounds led by Coatue, GGV Capital, Citi Ventures, and Kaszek Ventures, achieved positive EBITDA in H2 2025, and operates from headquarters in São Paulo with offices in Mexico City and Medellín.
Clara firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Clara
- Legal name
- Clara Instituição de Pagamento Ltda.
- Website
- http://clara.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2020
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Clara is a Latin American corporate spend management platform providing AI-powered corporate cards, expense management, bill payment, and digital banking to over 30,000 mid-market and enterprise companies across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Clara industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Corporate Spend Management
- NAICS
- Credit Card Issuing (522210), Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232)
- SIC
- Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153), Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Corporate Cards & Spend Controls (FSAGAJAF)
Keywords
Where Clara is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- São Paulo
- HQ country
- Brazil
- HQ region
- Latin America
Offices3 records
Markets served
Clara business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Corporate Card Fees: Revenue from corporate credit card issuance including annual fees (R$799 for Black cards), transaction fees, and interchange fees on corporate spending
- Subscription Plans: Tiered subscription model with Starter (free), Pro (R$999/month), and Enterprise (custom pricing) plans offering increasing levels of functionality
- Financing and Credit: Interest income from credit facilities and flexible credit limits for corporate clients, including up to 40 days financing support
- CDI Benefits: Yield returns up to 110% of CDI on account balances, with benefit accumulated as discount on invoices rather than direct financial income
- Bill Payment Services: Processing fees for bill payment services across Mexico and Latin America markets
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Starter Plan - Free tier for smaller teams |
| Subscription | Monthly | Pro Plan - Intelligent tools for mid-sized operations |
| Subscription | Multi-year contract | Enterprise Plan - Built for scale with dedicated support |
| Unit Pricing | Pay-as-you-go | Card and Transaction Fees |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
Clara product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Clara provides an end-to-end corporate spend management platform for businesses in Latin America, combining corporate credit cards (physical, virtual, and single-use variants) issued via a direct Mastercard partnership with automated expense management, vendor and bill payments, business banking, and AI-powered financial insights. Its offerings are sold to mid-market and enterprise finance teams across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia through tiered subscriptions, card fees, and credit-based financing.
Product overview
Clara is a unified spend management platform for Latin American businesses operating in Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia. The platform combines corporate credit cards (physical, virtual, and single-use VCNs), AI-powered expense management, travel payments, vendor payments, and digital banking into a single integrated system. Core offerings include the Corporate Card suite (Black, White, Virtual variants), Spend Management platform with automated reporting and approvals, Clara TravelPay for business travel, Accounts Payable for vendor payments, and Business Banking for digital accounts. The platform is powered by Clara Intelligence, an AI layer delivering real-time predictive insights, automated CFO agent capabilities, and anomaly detection. The system integrates natively with major ERP platforms including Oracle NetSuite, SAP Concur, QuickBooks, Microsoft Dynamics, and Zoho Expense for seamless financial reconciliation.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Clara Intelligence: AI-powered feature providing real-time spending insights, an automated CFO agent, and predictive insights that centralize and analyze all company spend.
- Clara TravelPay
- Clara Conta
Products and services
- Corporate Card Physical, virtual, and single-use virtual card numbers for corporate spending with customizable limits, controls, and policy enforcement. Includes Black, White, and Virtual variants issued through Clara's direct Mastercard partnership. Targeted at finance teams at companies across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia.
- Spend Management Platform Comprehensive expense management platform with automated expense reporting, multi-step approvals, compliance controls, and real-time spend visibility. Eliminates manual tracking and reduces administrative overhead for finance teams.
- Clara TravelPay Travel-specific payment solution offering virtual cards and transaction tracking for business travel. Provides World Elite Mastercard acceptance and prevents unexpected or unauthorized charges during travel.
- Accounts Payable Vendor payment and bill processing solution that enables businesses to pay suppliers and bills in minutes rather than days. Supports cross-border payments and automated reconciliation for finance teams managing supplier relationships.
- Business Banking / Clara Conta Digital business account offering automatic yield (up to 110% of CDI in Brazil), free unlimited Pix and TED transfers, free unlimited boleto payments, and automatic credit limit increases. Regulated by central banks in countries of operation.
- Clara Intelligence AI-powered analytics suite featuring an automated CFO agent and predictive insights. Centralizes and analyzes all company spending data to identify patterns, anomalies, and cost-saving opportunities in real time for finance teams.
- Clara Mobile App Mobile application empowering cardholders with autonomy and real-time spend tracking. Enables receipt uploads, expense categorization, and financial visibility on the go.
- Clara Reembolsos Automated reimbursement solution that combines complex approvals with integrated payments, eliminating paperwork and speeding up refund processes for out-of-pocket employee expenses.
Quantifiable outcome
- $15 billion in annual processed volume
- +5 more outcomes
Companies that use Clara
Customer profileNamed customers17 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Clara technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration8 records
AI capability8 records
Feature7 records
Clara partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Seven partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- L'OréalminorCo-branded corporate credit card partnership for beauty sector professionals in Latin America, initially in Mexico. Card offers rewards, discounts, and access to training for salon owners and beauty creators.
- MastercardcoreDirect partnership making Clara the first corporate credit card provider in Latin America not tied to a bank, enabling local card issuance in Mexico, Brazil, and Colombia.
- SAP ConcurcoreNative ERP integration with SAP Concur for expense and travel management, enabling seamless data flow for enterprise clients.
- Oracle NetSuitecoreVerified integration with Oracle NetSuite for comprehensive cloud-based business management.
- Microsoft DynamicscoreIntegration with Microsoft Dynamics 365 ERP system for small and medium-sized enterprises.
- QuickBookscoreNative integration with Intuit QuickBooks for expense tracking and financial management.
- EndeavorminorClara recognized as Endeavour Outliers 2025, part of Endeavor's high-impact entrepreneur network.
Scale indicators15 records
Recent moves8 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Clara competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Airwallex: Cross-border payments and multi-currency corporate cards focused on global SMBs; comparable in international corporate-card issuance and AP automation, with broader geographic reach.
Direct peers
- Spendesk: European all-in-one spend management platform combining prepaid cards, invoice management, and automation; comparable SaaS-first spend management model to Clara's spend module.
- Pleo: European SMB corporate card and expense management platform with strong ERP integrations; similar product structure including virtual cards, reimbursements, and automated reporting.
- Brex: US-based corporate card + spend management platform with AI-powered expense controls, ERP integrations, and a high-growth sales-led motion targeting startups and mid-market — directly comparable in product, business model, and category leadership.
- Ramp: US-based corporate cards and autonomous spend management SaaS with strong ERP integrations and AI-driven cost-saving insights; comparable on card issuance + software + automation playbook Clara is replicating in LatAm.
- Jeeves: Cross-border corporate card and spend platform focused on emerging markets; overlapping product and customer segment with Clara in LatAm.
- Tribal Credit: Mexico- and LatAm-focused corporate cards and spend management for SMBs and mid-market — direct regional competitor serving the same customer base.
Broad incumbents
- WEX: Established public B2B payments company spanning fleet, travel, and corporate card solutions; an incumbent operating in adjacent verticals (corporate travel payments) with significant market presence.
- Edenred: Global B2B corporate-payment solutions provider (meal benefits, fleet, corporate cards) operating across LatAm; broad incumbent with overlapping corporate-payment products.
- Nubank: Largest LatAm consumer fintech expanding into B2B and SMB accounts; potential competitor entering corporate spend management from a deposit-rich consumer base.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Clara social profiles
Digital presenceClara compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Clara financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Clara leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
Clara funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds20 records
Investors52 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Clara M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Clara
What does Clara do?
Clara provides an end-to-end corporate spend management platform for businesses in Latin America, combining corporate credit cards (physical, virtual, and single-use variants) issued via a direct Mastercard partnership with automated expense management, vendor and bill payments, business banking, and AI-powered financial insights. Its offerings are sold to mid-market and enterprise finance teams across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia through tiered subscriptions, card fees, and credit-based financing.
Is Clara a public or private company?
Clara is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Clara founded?
Clara was founded in 2020. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Clara based?
Clara is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil, in the Latin America region.
How does Clara make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. Corporate Card Fees are the primary driver. The others are subscription Plans, financing and Credit, CDI Benefits and bill Payment Services.
Who are Clara's main competitors?
Airwallex is listed as an emerging player. Direct peers are Spendesk, Pleo, Brex, Ramp, Jeeves and Tribal Credit. Broad incumbents are WEX, Edenred and Nubank.
Does Clara have an API?
Yes. Clara offers an API for developers to build custom workflows, including payment processing, vendor payments, and spend management automation. The API enables integration capabilities for ERP systems, allowing automated reconciliation and financial data sync. Developer documentation is at www.clara.com/pt-br/products/desenvolvedores.
What industry is Clara in?
Clara's product category is Corporate Spend Management. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAGAJAF, Corporate Cards & Spend Controls. Its NAICS code is 522210 and its SIC code is 6153.