Sardine, a behavior-based fraud and compliance platform for fintechs developed by veterans from Coinbase, Revolut, and PayPal, has successfully raised $19.5 million in a Series A funding round.
Notable investors in this round include Andreessen Horowitz, NYCA, and Experian Ventures. Angela Strange, a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, will join the Sardine board.
The core technology of Sardine leverages AI to generate a real-time fraud score by analyzing the user’s identity, device, and behavior patterns during account setup and funding. It also offers continuous monitoring for fraudulent activities during account logins, deposits, and withdrawals.
Sardine’s technology is currently utilized by over 50 firms, including neobanks like Brex and cryptocurrency exchanges such as Bakkt and FTX, which have integrated Sardine’s SDK into their web and mobile applications.
Additionally, the startup has introduced instant bank ACH transfers for cryptocurrency on-ramps, eliminating the typical three to seven-day waiting period for consumers to access their funds.
Soups Ranjan, CEO of Sardine, remarked, “It’s an amazing time, as the concept of money is being reinvented with the rise of fintech and crypto digital wallets. However, customers often face frustration when trying to move money instantly from legacy banks to their new fintech, crypto, DeFi, or NFT wallets. Establishing trust in whether someone is using their own bank account or a stolen one is incredibly challenging. Sardine has developed a behavior-based platform that leverages tens of thousands of data points about user behavior, combined with various data sources—including phone, email, social media, and blockchain analytics—to establish a real-time trust score.”