Zurich-based fintech company ClearPay Technologies has secured CHF 120 million in a Series C funding round led by Silicon Valley venture capital firm Sequoia Capital, with participation from existing investors including Swiss Re Ventures and UBS Next. The raise values the four-year-old startup at approximately CHF 800 million, making it one of the most highly valued fintech companies in Switzerland.
ClearPay’s Platform and Growth
ClearPay has built a real-time cross-border payment platform that leverages distributed ledger technology to reduce settlement times from days to seconds while cutting transaction costs by up to 80 percent compared to traditional banking rails. The platform currently processes over CHF 3 billion in monthly transaction volume across 45 countries and serves more than 2,000 corporate clients, ranging from mid-sized exporters to multinational corporations.
“Switzerland sits at the intersection of global finance and technological innovation, and ClearPay is the embodiment of that convergence,” said CEO and co-founder Lukas Hartmann. “This funding will allow us to accelerate our expansion into Asian and Latin American markets while deepening our product offering for institutional clients.”
The company plans to use the new capital to expand its engineering team in Zurich by 150 positions over the next 18 months, with a focus on machine learning engineers and compliance specialists. ClearPay also intends to open new offices in Singapore and São Paulo by the end of the year, building on existing partnerships with regional banks in both markets. The expansion comes as global demand for efficient cross-border payment solutions continues to grow.
Swiss Fintech Ecosystem Momentum
The funding round highlights the growing maturity of Switzerland’s fintech ecosystem, which has attracted record levels of investment in recent years. According to the Swiss Finance and Technology Association, Swiss fintech firms raised a combined CHF 2.1 billion in 2025, up 34 percent from the previous year. Zurich and Zug have emerged as the primary hubs, benefiting from a favourable regulatory environment, deep talent pools, and proximity to established financial institutions.
FINMA has been widely credited with creating a regulatory framework that encourages innovation while maintaining robust consumer protections. The regulator’s sandbox approach, which allows startups to operate under simplified licensing requirements during their early stages, has been particularly effective in attracting international founders to establish their companies in Switzerland.
