Synctera

# Synctera: Banking Infrastructure for the Fintech Era

High-Level Overview

Synctera is a banking and payments platform that provides the technology infrastructure and compliance framework for companies to launch fintech and embedded banking products.[1] Founded in 2020 and based in Palo Alto, California, the company serves fintech startups, established businesses seeking to embed banking capabilities, and sponsor banks managing fintech partnerships.[1]

The platform addresses a critical gap in the fintech ecosystem: the complexity of building compliant banking products from scratch. Rather than requiring companies to navigate regulatory requirements and banking infrastructure independently, Synctera consolidates essential services—accounts, card issuance, money movement, and risk management—into a unified set of APIs and operational tools.[3] This enables developers to launch sophisticated financial products quickly while maintaining regulatory compliance through sponsor bank partnerships.

Origin Story

Synctera was founded in 2020 by a team with deep expertise spanning both banking and modern technology platforms.[6] The company was formerly known as Entangle before rebranding to reflect its mission of connecting fintech companies with the banking infrastructure they need.[1] The founding team includes Peter Hazlehurst (Co-Founder & CEO) and executives with backgrounds from world-class technology companies including Uber, Google, Yodlee, and Koho, paired with deep banking and compliance expertise.[6]

The company's trajectory demonstrates rapid market validation. By 2022, Synctera had achieved 2,082% year-over-year revenue growth from Q4 2021 through Q4 2022, with its platform powering over 2.3 million consumer cards and accounts and processing 30+ million transactions.[4] The platform had also facilitated 55+ million API calls from fintech customers and sponsor bank partners.[4]

Core Differentiators

Developer Experience & Speed

• A single, unified set of powerful APIs enables companies to quickly launch bank accounts, debit cards, charge cards, lines of credit, and money movement products[2]
• The platform consolidates account management, card services, money movement, and risk services under central control through a family of APIs and dashboard interface[3]

Compliance & Operations Infrastructure

• Built-in compliance framework with KYC verification, document verification, transaction fraud monitoring, and legally required disclosure handling[3]
• Ground Control program provides free end-to-end banking and compliance operational support for the first six months of a fintech's journey[4]
• Synctera Cases—a case management platform that streamlines communications and establishes direct connections between sponsor banks and fintech partners[4]

Sponsor Bank Management

• Enables sponsor banks to compliantly manage and maintain oversight over their fintech partners through centralized visibility into program data, reconciliation, operations, and risk management[1][7]
• Intelligent matching technology connects fintech companies with banks in Synctera's network that align with their product vision and timeline[7]

Data & Reconciliation

• The Synctera Ledger provides complete visibility into customer, account, and transaction data with a reconciliation engine that ensures data always matches the sponsor bank's ledger[5]
• PCI-certified data vault for secure information storage[4]

Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Synctera operates at the intersection of two powerful trends: the explosive growth of embedded finance and the regulatory maturation of the fintech sector. As fintech companies have proliferated, the need for compliant, scalable banking infrastructure has become acute—traditional banking APIs and manual compliance processes create bottlenecks that slow innovation.

The company's positioning reflects a market shift toward infrastructure-as-a-service models in financial services. Rather than competing directly with fintech applications, Synctera enables the entire ecosystem by removing technical and regulatory friction. This mirrors successful infrastructure plays in other sectors (Stripe in payments, Twilio in communications) where platform providers become essential utilities.

The timing is particularly favorable given regulatory scrutiny of fintech partnerships and sponsor banking arrangements. Synctera's compliance-first architecture and sponsor bank oversight tools address regulators' concerns about risk management in fintech ecosystems, making it an attractive partner for both fintech companies and banks navigating this complex landscape.

Quick Take & Future Outlook

Synctera has established itself as a critical infrastructure layer in the fintech ecosystem, with strong growth metrics and a differentiated approach to the sponsor bank relationship. The company's focus on compliance automation and operational tooling—rather than just APIs—positions it well as the fintech sector matures and regulatory requirements intensify.

Looking ahead, Synctera's influence will likely expand as embedded finance becomes standard across industries. The company's expansion into lending and credit products signals ambitions to deepen its platform capabilities beyond payments and accounts.[4] As more traditional businesses embed banking into their products, demand for Synctera's infrastructure should accelerate, particularly if the company continues to strengthen its sponsor bank network and compliance automation capabilities.

The broader question for Synctera is whether it can maintain its position as fintech infrastructure consolidates—a space where network effects and switching costs create winner-take-most dynamics. Its early mover advantage, strong sponsor bank relationships, and developer-friendly approach provide a solid foundation, but sustained innovation in compliance automation and operational tooling will be essential to defend its market position.