Origin Story
Following the start of the war between Russia and Ukraine in early 2022, several employees of Tinkoff Bank — one of the world’s first and most successful digital banks — decided to leave Russia and build a new digital banking venture elsewhere.
Led by Neri Tollardo and Danil Anisimov, the group relocated and began evaluating markets where their experience in building large-scale digital banking infrastructure could have the greatest impact.
Mexico quickly emerged as the most attractive destination.
Mexico offered an unparalleled opportunity
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Favorable demographics and a large young population
Low penetration of financial services, with millions of consumers underserved by traditional banks
A rapidly growing fintech ecosystem, but still early in its development
A progressive regulatory framework that encourages competition and innovation while allowing new entrants
Mexico has also long been a country that thrives on the integration of international talent and expertise. From its industrial development to its financial sector, some of the most transformative enterprises in Mexico's history have been built by teams that combined global best practices with deep local knowledge. Plata follows in that tradition.
With these fundamentals in place, the founding team began building Plata, a technology-driven financial institution designed to bring simple, transparent, and accessible banking services to millions of customers in Mexico.
What began as a small team with a bold idea became a team with united mission to build the bank Mexico deserves.
From the outset, the international team partnered with Mexican banking and industry experts to ensure that global best practices could be adapted to the realities of the local market — its regulatory environment, consumer behavior, and cultural nuances. This combination of world-class digital banking experience with deep local knowledge became a defining strength of the company. The company's leadership brings deep experience in scaling digital banking platforms and building high-quality consumer and business financial products at global scale.
The team came together with such speed and shared purpose that the line between founders and early employees became almost impossible to draw. What started as a small group of people who bet everything on an idea quickly became a cohesive team united by a common mission: to build the bank that Mexico deserves.
Regulatory commitment
From the outset, Plata made the strategic decision to operate as a fully licensed financial institution in the markets in which it operates. The company believes that building a long-term, trusted financial institution requires operating under the highest regulatory standards and working closely with supervisory authorities.
In Mexico, Plata received authorization from the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV) in December 2024, and commenced operations as a regulated institution in March 2026.
In Colombia, the company received authorization in mid-2025 to establish a Compañía de Financiamiento, a regulated financial entity supervised by the Superintendencia Financiera de Colombia. These milestones reflect Plata’s commitment to operating under the most rigorous regulatory frameworks and maintaining the highest standards of governance, transparency, and compliance.
Dec’24
Got authorization from the National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV) in Mexico
Jun’25
Got authorization in Colombia and established a Compañía de Financiamiento
Mar’26
Commenced operations as a regulated institution in Mexico
Technology and in-house development
Plata’s technological platform is built almost entirely in-house by its engineering teams, allowing the company to maintain full control over the architecture, security, and scalability of its systems. This approach enables rapid product development while ensuring the stability and resilience required for mission-critical financial infrastructure.
The platform is designed using modern cloud-native architecture and robust risk management systems, allowing Plata to deliver high-quality financial services while maintaining strict operational reliability. By developing its core technology internally rather than relying on third-party systems, Plata ensures the highest standards of security, performance, and customer experience.
Investors
To date, Plata has been backed by several of the leading and most reputable global investors, reflecting strong international confidence in the company’s mission and execution capabilities. Investors include (among others):
Audeo is an early stage venture capital firm investing in technology enabled companies primarily in the US & Latam.
audeo.ventures
Covalto integrates credit, investment, and financial solutions to support businesses at every stage of growth.
covalto.com
Baring Ventures is a group of companies managing or advising private equity funds with $5.5 billion in assets
baringventures.com
A growth equity partner backing top founders in Latin America, focused on enduring innovation.
bicycle.capital
BTG Pactual offering 1,000+ investment options across fixed income, equities, funds, FX, and pensions.
btgpactual.com
Fasanara Capital is a leading institutional asset manager and a fintech investing pioneer.
fasanara.com
Hedosophia backs tech companies with strategic capital to scale and lead globally.
www.hedosophia.com
Kora seeks to invest in exceptional teams building enduring businesses in emerging digital economies.
koracap.com
Moore Capital Management is a private investment management firm that invests in the global financial markets.
moorecap.com
Nomura provides advisory and capital-raising solutions to corporations, financial institutions, and governments.
nomura.com
QIA is a global investment organization with exposure across major markets, asset classes, sectors, and geographies.
qia.qa
Spice Expeditions investing in generational financial brands in overlooked markets.
spice.vc
TelevisaUnivision is the world’s leading Spanish-language media, streaming, and content company.
televisaunivision.com
University of Wisconsin Foundation raises and invests funds to support the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
supportuw.org
University of Illinois Foundation manages private gifts to support the University of Illinois’s mission.
uif.uillinois.edu
Valor pioneers cross-border venture fund connecting U.S., Latin American, and global tech markets.
valorcapitalgroup.com
Washington University in St. Louis is a private research university in Missouri, United States.
endowment.wustl.edu
Notable capital markets transactions
These investors collectively represent a broad mix of global venture capital, sovereign wealth funds, global banks, private equity firms, and strategic financial institutions.
$165mln
@ 1.5bn post-money valuation, Series A in March 2025
$250mln
@ 3.1bn post-money valuation, Series B in October 2025
$405mln
@ 5.0bn post-money valuation, Series C in April 2026
$500mln
credit facility with Nomura
$200mln
unsecured bonds in the Nordic market
Family members of Oleg Tinkov, the founder of Tinkoff Bank, and Michael Calvey, the founder of Baring Ventures, invested in Plata via Baring Ventures fund. The Baring Ventures fund is managed by US-based and US-national executives from the Baring Ventures team, that hold control over the investment of the fund.
Oleg Tinkov was among the few Russian entrepreneurs who publicly opposed the war in Ukraine, taking a clear moral stance despite significant personal consequences.
Advisors
Plata has always relied on the advice of some of the world’s most respected professionals for legal, accounting, and other general corporate matters:
Corporate Governance
Plata’s holding company, Different Technologies LLC, is incorporated in Delaware, United States, one of the most established and investor-protective legal jurisdictions globally. This structure provides a robust foundation for scalable governance, capital markets access, and shareholder protection.
Governance framework designed for public-market readiness
Delaware legal regime: Predictable case law, strong minority shareholder protections, and efficient dispute resolution through the Court of Chancery
U.S. public-company standards: Governance aligned with NYSE/Nasdaq requirements
One-share, one-vote structure: Ensures alignment between economic ownership and control, avoiding governance distortions common in emerging markets
No special rights or side agreements: Clean capital structure designed to support institutional investor participation and index eligibility
Board evolution and oversight
Actively building a majority-independent, globally recognized Board of Directors with deep expertise across financial services, risk, technology, and public markets
Establishing Audit, and Compensation Committees aligned with U.S. public company best practices
Control environment and transparency
Implementation of SOX-compliant internal control frameworks (ICFR), including early adoption of SOX 404(b) under construction
Dedicated Risk Committee overseeing credit, liquidity, market, and operational risk
Formal Related-Party Transactions Policy, with review and approval processes
Institutional-grade internal audit function with direct reporting lines to the Audit Committee
Transparency, disclosure, and investor alignment
Quarterly reporting discipline
Adoption of 10b5-1 trading policies and insider governance frameworks under construction
Disclosure practices designed to meet expectations of institutional investors and global asset managers
Data Protection
Plata maintains robust data protection systems designed to comply with applicable data protection and privacy regulations across the jurisdictions in which it operates. Its infrastructure is fully integrated with Amazon Web Services in the US, providing strong cybersecurity aligned with industry best practices.
The Compliance and Legal teams are actively involved in the development of new products and processes, ensuring alignment with regulatory requirements and internal policies, and retaining authority to require changes when needed.
Plata continues to strengthen its data protection framework through improved data mapping and ongoing training for business and technology teams.
Data segregation and access controls ensure that only authorized personnel can access personal or sensitive information on a strict need-to-know basis, with role-based permissions and full auditability of interactions.
Plata has established processes to handle data subject rights requests (e.g., access, rectification, erasure), ensuring timely responses and proper investigation of any potential compliance incidents.
AML/CFT and Anti-Fraud
Plata is committed to maintaining high standards in anti-money laundering (AML)/counter-terrorist financing (CFT) and anti-fraud, in line with applicable regulations across the jurisdictions in which it operates.
Its AML/CFT framework includes comprehensive risk assessment processes, ongoing transaction monitoring, enhanced due diligence for higher-risk clients, and regular reviews of internal policies to ensure effectiveness. Suspicious activity is promptly identified, reported, and investigated by designated compliance personnel under clear procedures because AML/FT monitoring is performed in real time.
AML/CFT framework includes risk assessment, transaction monitoring, enhanced due diligence, and regular policy reviews.
Compliance and Legal teams are closely involved in the development of new products and services, ensuring alignment with regulatory obligations and internal policies, and retaining authority to require adjustments when necessary. Plata also invests in continuous training and the enhancement of monitoring tools to strengthen its compliance culture.
In parallel, Plata maintains a robust fraud prevention program that combines proprietary technology, advanced analytics, and specialized operational teams. Transactions are monitored in real time using in-house detection systems, with rules continuously updated to address evolving threats.
A dedicated antifraud team investigates and resolves alerts under defined protocols, while multiple security layers — such as biometric verification, device fingerprinting, and adaptive authentication — are embedded into the platform.
Plata also promotes customer awareness of fraud risks and continuously improves its systems in line with industry standards to safeguard users and ensure the integrity of its operations.
Relationship with Oleg Tinkov
Oleg Tinkov is widely recognized as a pioneer in the global fintech industry. He founded Tinkoff Bank, one of the world’s most successful digital banks, which became a benchmark for innovation in consumer banking and helped redefine how modern digital banks operate.
Prior to building the bank, Oleg had founded and scaled several successful businesses across multiple industries.
Business industries:
Consumer electronics retail
Frozen food production
Brewing
Restaurant chains
Digital financial services.
Many members of Plata’s founding and management team previously worked together with Oleg at Tinkoff Bank, where they gained experience building one of the largest digital banking platforms in the world.
Oleg acts as an advisor to Plata’s senior management, sharing strategic insights and lessons learned from his experience building global-scale businesses. He holds no personal investment or managerial position in Plata.
Public stance against the war in Ukraine
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Oleg Tinkov became one of the very few prominent Russian entrepreneurs to publicly condemn the war.
Shortly after his public statements, his family was forced to sell his stake in Tinkoff Bank under highly unfavorable circumstances.
As a result, the Tinkov family lost the vast majority of their wealth.
His public stance was widely reported internationally and was viewed as a rare case of a major Russian business leader taking a clear moral position despite significant personal and financial consequences.
Personal health and philanthropic work
In 2019, Oleg Tinkov was diagnosed with acute leukemia, a life-threatening illness that required extensive treatment, including a bone marrow transplant.
Following his recovery, he founded a charitable foundation focused on expanding access to bone marrow donor registries and supporting patients with blood cancers, particularly in Eastern Europe where donor availability has historically been limited.
This philanthropic work has become an important part of his personal mission following his recovery.
Citizenship and residence
Oleg Tinkov and his family renounced their Russian citizenship and have lived outside of Russia for more than a decade. Today the family resides outside Russia, are citizens of the EU and maintain no political or commercial ties to the Russian state.
Sanctions and tax matters
Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Oleg Tinkov was included in the United Kingdom sanctions list in 2022 as part of broader sanctions imposed on Russian business figures.
After a legal review and proceedings, the UK government removed him from the sanctions list in 2023, recognizing that the designation had been made in error. Neither Oleg or any of his family members have ever been designated by the USA or the EU.
Separately, Oleg previously faced a U.S. tax case related to the renunciation of his U.S. citizenship, which occurred several years before the war. The matter concerned an error in the tax return filed by Oleg in connection with the expatriation process.
The case was fully resolved through a settlement with the U.S. Internal Revenue Service. The matter has since been fully closed and no outstanding issues remain with U.S. authorities. The claims were made on a personal basis and never included nor affected any of the companies associated with Oleg and his family.
AML/CFT and Anti-Fraud
Plata is an independent company with no commercial, strategic, operational, or any other kind of relationship with Russia or with T-Bank (formerly Tinkoff Bank).
Plata:
Does not use technology, infrastructure, or intellectual property belonging to T-Bank
Maintains no commercial agreements with any Russian entities.
Plata is an international fintech company headquartered in the USA, operating independently and focused on serving customers in Mexico and other markets.
*formerly Tinkoff Bank
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