Capitolis just locked in $56 million, and it’s not just the money that matters—it’s who’s betting on them. The fintech firm, known for rethinking how capital moves through financial markets, has added Barclays and BNP Paribas to an already heavyweight investor roster including J.P. Morgan, Citi, Morgan Stanley, State Street, and UBS.

Also upping their stakes are Canapi Ventures, 9Yards Capital, and Greenfield Partners—venture backers from Capitolis’ Series D round in 2022. With this final close, Capitolis signals not just funding, but deepening strategic alignment with the financial giants it serves.

What Capitolis Actually Does

If you’re not familiar, Capitolis builds infrastructure software for capital markets, focusing on two key areas: Capital Marketplace and Portfolio Optimization. In short, it helps banks and other major financial players manage and reallocate capital more efficiently—whether by offloading exposures or optimizing how capital is deployed across portfolios.

This is the kind of back-end plumbing that keeps global finance humming—and makes regulators breathe easier. It’s also notoriously complex, which makes Capitolis’ traction notable.

From Underdog to Infrastructure Player

Founded by Gil Mandelzis, a former CEO of EBS BrokerTec and co-founder of Traiana, Capitolis has carved out a niche as an “optimization partner” to the world’s most systemically important banks. It’s not trying to disrupt the incumbents—it’s enabling them to operate smarter.

The company’s software allows banks to reduce their notional exposures and free up capital by matching and compressing trades across institutions. Think of it as the financial system’s version of defragmenting a hard drive—only with trillions of dollars at stake.

That value proposition is clearly resonating.

Why the Investment Matters Now

The $56 million round comes amid continued pressure on capital efficiency, with Basel IV looming and a tighter macro environment forcing institutions to rethink how they use balance sheets. Capitolis is well-positioned to benefit from these regulatory and structural shifts.

According to Mandelzis, “These investments will help us further accelerate our growth and expansion in the capital markets as we continue our strong business momentum.”

In an era when fintech headlines are often dominated by retail-facing apps and crypto volatility, Capitolis stands out for doing the unglamorous but essential work of improving the infrastructure beneath the surface. And with some of the world’s biggest banks reinforcing their bets, it’s a sign that this kind of quiet fintech is having a loud impact.

Strategic Validation, Not Just Cash

Statements from Barclays and BNP Paribas weren’t just boilerplate. Both emphasized deep collaboration—a key signal that Capitolis isn’t just a portfolio play, but part of their operating strategies.

“This investment further cements the collaboration between our firms,” said Kester Keating, Head of US Principal Investments at Barclays.

BNP’s Junaid Baig, Head of Strategic Investments, echoed that sentiment: “We’re excited to support the growth of Capitolis… to better serve our clients.”

From the venture side, the tone was no less bullish.

“Capitolis is an N-of-1 company building critical infrastructure,” said Theo Osborne, Managing Partner at 9Yards Capital.

Shay Grinfeld of Greenfield Partners added, “Capitolis continues to deliver solutions that make capital markets safer and more efficient.”

That’s a lot of conviction from both sides of the financial world: banks that rely on stability, and VCs that chase scale.

Capitolis isn’t building another neobank or shiny front-end trading app. It’s building the foundational infrastructure to make capital markets cleaner, faster, and more compliant. In today’s environment—where regulation, volatility, and efficiency are top of mind—that’s a pitch both Wall Street and Sand Hill Road can get behind.

Stay Ahead of the Curve with GlobalFinTechEdge — Your Daily Edge in Fintech Intelligence. Subscribe Now.