Better Money completes 10 million seed funding rounds, with former a16z investors betting on stablecoin liquidation exchanges

Better Money Company, a stablecoin infrastructure startup, announced on March 31 that it has completed a $10 million seed round, co-founded by former a16z crypto venture investor Sam Broner and his college friend Adam Zuckerman. The round was led by a16z crypto, and the company’s core positioning is a stablecoin clearing center.

Market pain point: A fragmented stablecoin ecosystem needs a single clearing entry point

The rapid expansion of the stablecoin market is creating a new structural problem. In addition to mainstream tokens like USDC and USDT, major enterprises such as Klarna, Cloudflare, Sony, and Fiserv have recently launched or announced plans to launch their own stablecoins, and the overall range of token types in the market is rapidly expanding.

Broner said, “If you want an ever-evolving stablecoin ecosystem, you need somewhere to access all the different stablecoins in the market.” Better Money’s solution is to act as a unified clearing access layer for various stablecoins, so that corporate customers no longer need to buy and sell different tokens directly in public markets (typically involving higher slippage and fees), but instead complete token conversions through the Better Money platform at institutional costs.

a16z crypto general partner Ali Yahya explained the rationale behind a16z’s investment: “He quickly became our stablecoin expert and taught us a lot about stablecoins. This is mainly why we invested, and it’s also our consistent approach to making early-stage investments.”

Business model and confirmed token issuers

Broner previously worked in software development at General Electric (GE) and Microsoft. After that, he worked at a16z crypto for more than two years, focusing on investing in stablecoin startups (including the remittance startup Zar). Zuckerman has a legal background and previously served as a lawyer at the law firm Latham & Watkins, before becoming Chief Legal Officer at Eigen Labs.

Better Money’s clearing center business model is as follows:

Direct account relationships: Establish direct accounts with each of the major stablecoin issuers to directly order tokens at a lower cost than public markets, eliminating middleman markups

Compliant token screening: Supports only stablecoins that meet the requirements of the U.S. Genius Act. The market’s largest USDT is excluded for not meeting the standard, but Tether’s U.S.-compliant version USAT is within the support scope

Confirmed resident issuers: Paxos, Stripe’s Bridge, and MoonPay have all committed to joining the clearing center

The product has not officially launched yet. Broner and Zuckerman plan to open the platform to customers within the coming weeks.

Industry background: Valuations for the stablecoin infrastructure track keep rising

The timing of Better Money’s entry comes as the stablecoin infrastructure track is entering a capital-intensive phase. In March of this year, Mastercard agreed to acquire London stablecoin infrastructure company BVNK for up to $1.8 billion, becoming the largest corporate acquisition in the stablecoin space to date, providing a strong benchmark for valuations across the track.

Zuckerman’s most direct description of Better Money’s positioning is: “Our mission is to make stablecoins better money.”

Frequently asked questions

What is the core business of Better Money Company?

Better Money positions itself as a stablecoin clearing center, aiming to enable corporate customers to exchange and clear between different USD-backed stablecoins at low cost. By setting up direct account relationships with major issuers, the platform provides lower token conversion costs than public markets and solves the access problems caused by the fragmentation of the stablecoin ecosystem.

Why did a16z choose to invest in a company founded by its former employee?

a16z crypto general partner Ali Yahya said that this investment primarily reflects a bet on Sam Broner’s personal capabilities—during his time at a16z, Broner became the company’s stablecoin expert, accumulating deep industry knowledge and a network of relationships. This also reflects a core investment philosophy at a16z in early-stage investing: “bet on the person first, then bet on the track.”

Does Better Money support USDT?

According to the current plan, USDT is excluded from the list of tokens supported by Better Money because it does not meet the compliance standards of the U.S. Genius Act. However, Tether’s U.S.-compliant version USAT is within the support scope. The issuers already confirmed to join the clearing center include Paxos, Stripe Bridge, and MoonPay.