Pollinate

What Pollinate does

Pollinate International Limited, founded in 2017 and headquartered in London, provides a modular, API-first digital experience platform that enables banks and payment processors to deliver white-labeled merchant services to small and medium-sized businesses. The company's core product comprises four configurable modules — Onboarding, Merchant Command Center, Integrated Merchant Services, and ISV Enablement — supported by configuration toolkits and data orchestration capabilities, all delivered through an Experience as a Service (EaaS) model. The platform is designed for rapid deployment (weeks rather than months) and integrates across the bank or processor ecosystem while preserving the financial institution's brand identity.

The company's go-to-market is exclusively direct enterprise sales targeting Tier 1 banks and payment processors, with named customers including Truist (US), NatWest (UK), and National Australia Bank. Pollinate earns revenue primarily through platform/SaaS licensing fees paid by banks for access to the modular solution. The business operates offices in London (UK headquarters), Charlotte (North America), and Cape Town (engineering and R&D hub), with delivery capability spanning three continents.

Leadership carries deep payments-industry pedigree, including former executives from Fiserv, Monitise, Visa Europe, and FIS. The company has raised approximately $218 million in disclosed funding across 2019-2021 from investors including Insight Partners, National Australia Bank, Mastercard, Motive Partners, NatWest Group, EFM Asset Management, and Microsoft, with the latter also appearing as a technology/investor partner. Strategic partnerships with Stripe (2025) and Mastercard (2025) extend the company's ecosystem reach, while Agentic AI features on the roadmap represent the next planned platform expansion.

Name

Pollinate

Legal name

Pollinate International Limited

Website

https://pollinate.global

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Pollinate provides a modular, API-first digital experience platform that enables Tier 1 banks and payment processors to deliver white-labeled merchant onboarding, command center, and integrated merchant services to small and medium-sized businesses across the US, UK, and Australia.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Banking Merchant Services Software

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (5182)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Payment Initiation & Account-to-Account (A2A) Payments (PIS, RTP initiation) (FSAGACAI)

akta.pro secondary industry

Account Verification & Ownership (AVS/AOV, micro-deposits, auth) (FSAGACAB)

Keywords

• Merchant acquiring platform
• Banking experience software
• Embedded finance solutions
• SMB payment services
• Digital onboarding platform

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Platform/SaaS Licensing: Pollinate provides banks with their digital experience platform on a licensing basis. The platform includes onboarding, merchant command center, integrated merchant services, and ISV enablement capabilities. Revenue is generated through platform fees paid by banks for access to their modular, white-labeled solution.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Pollinate provides a modular, API-first digital experience platform that enables banks and payment processors to deliver modern SMB merchant services. The platform covers the full merchant lifecycle through four solutions—dynamic onboarding, a unified merchant command center, integrated merchant services within online banking, and ISV enablement for embedded finance—delivered via an Experience as a Service (EaaS) model.

Product overview

Pollinate offers a unified Digital Experience Platform for payments and banking, designed specifically for SMB merchant services. The platform consists of four core modules: Onboarding (dynamic customer acquisition workflows), Merchant Command Center (unified merchant dashboard), Integrated Merchant Services (bank channel integration), and ISV Enablement (embedded finance through software partners). These modules are supported by Configuration Toolkits, Data and Orchestration Capabilities, all delivered via an Experience as a Service (EaaS) model. The platform is modular, white-label, and API-first, enabling banks to rapidly deploy differentiated merchant experiences while maintaining brand integrity.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Digital Experience Platform A modular, API-first digital experience platform built for bank and processor integration, flexibility and scalability. Supports the entire merchant lifecycle from customer acquisition and onboarding through to business growth and expansion. Sold to banks and payment processors on a licensing basis.
• Onboarding Dynamic onboarding workflows supporting customer acquisition from consideration to first transaction, increasing conversion and decreasing dropouts across digital, assisted, or omni-channel journeys. A modular solution for banks and processors to onboard SMB merchants.
• Merchant Command Center A unified, bank-branded 'single pane of glass' dashboard that allows merchants to reconcile transactions, manage disputes, access statements, self-serve updates, and discover new services. Increases customer lifetime value, reduces cost to serve, and opens cross-sell opportunities.
• Integrated Merchant Services Integration of digital boarding and transaction management into online banking channels to increase penetration of merchant services and reduce attrition. Enables banks to embed merchant services within their existing digital banking experience.
• ISV Enablement

Quantifiable outcome

• NatWest became the fastest-growing UK bank acquirer after 6 years of partnership with Pollinate
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• StripecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Pollinate and Stripe partnered to support next generation SMB merchant services. The partnership is focused on helping banks deliver more modern SMB and merchant services experiences. This collaboration combines Stripe's payment infrastructure with Pollinate's digital experience platform to provide banks with comprehensive merchant services capabilities.
• MastercardcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Mastercard hosted Pollinate at their Tech Hub in Manhattan for a panel discussion on AI in banking and SMB services. This represents a strategic relationship for thought leadership and industry collaboration.
• TruistcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTruist, the 7th largest US bank, implemented Pollinate's platform to power 'Truist Merchant Engage'. This is a client partnership where Truist distributes Pollinate's platform to their SMB customers as a white-labeled merchant services solution.
• National Australia BankcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNAB partnered with Pollinate to modernize merchant services through the Merchant Portal and Customer Service Portal. Pollinate's platform enables NAB to offer digital onboarding and integrated merchant services within their online banking channel.
• NatWestcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNatWest partnered with Pollinate to launch Tyl by NatWest, which became the fastest-growing UK bank acquirer. Pollinate provides the digital experience platform enabling seamless onboarding, transaction reconciliation, and merchant insights.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Galileo Financial Technologies: SoFi subsidiary providing payment processing infrastructure and digital banking APIs to banks, fintechs, and corporates. Most directly comparable to Pollinate in serving banks/processors with modular payment and account infrastructure for SMB-facing products.
• Marqeta: Card issuing and payment processing platform whose modern API stack powers card programs for fintechs and banks. Comparable as a developer-first payment platform targeting financial institutions, with similar distribution into merchant and SMB contexts.
• Q2 Holdings: Digital banking platform serving community and regional banks with commercial and SMB banking solutions. Comparable as a SaaS vendor to banks seeking to modernize SMB and merchant-facing experiences.
• Mambu: SaaS banking platform providing composable core banking infrastructure to banks, fintechs, and lenders. Comparable as a SaaS vendor enabling banks to launch modern financial products with modular, API-first architecture.

Broad incumbents

• nCino: Cloud banking platform serving global financial institutions with commercial, retail, and SMB banking workflows. Comparable in selling SaaS to Tier 1 banks, but operating at a broader banking-operating-system level rather than merchant services focus.
• Finastra: Large financial software vendor serving global banks with lending, treasury, and digital banking solutions. Comparable as a broad incumbent banking technology provider that banks may evaluate alongside or instead of Pollinate.
• Temenos: Global banking software vendor providing core banking, payments, and digital channels to banks worldwide. Comparable as an incumbent banking platform vendor with overlapping reach into SMB and merchant services experiences.

Emerging players

• Thought Machine: Cloud-native core banking platform serving Tier 1 banks globally (e.g., Lloyds, JPMorgan, Standard Chartered). Comparable as a modern SaaS vendor replacing legacy banking infrastructure, with adjacent reach into commercial and SMB banking.
• 10x Banking: Cloud-native core banking platform serving Tier 1 banks (e.g., HSBC, JPMorgan). Comparable as a modern SaaS challenger to legacy banking infrastructure targeting the same bank buyer persona as Pollinate.
• Stripe Treasury: Stripe's embedded banking-as-a-service product enabling platforms to offer financial accounts. Now a partner of Pollinate but also a potential alternative for banks and platforms seeking integrated banking experiences.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/pollinateint
• Xx.com/pollinateint

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds3 records

Investors6 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pollinate