“Can a PSP-agnostic token vault become the universal payment identity layer for both human and AI agent-driven commerce?”
Founded in 2020 as a PCI-compliant tokenization vault for fintechs and merchants, Basis Theory initially focused on removing compliance burden by storing card data outside client infrastructure. Over 2023–2024 the company evolved into a multi-PSP routing and optimization layer — letting merchants tokenize once and route to any processor (Stripe, Adyen, Checkout.com) based on real-time intelligence. By 2026 the company extended the platform toward 'agentic commerce,' positioning the token vault as the identity and payment credential layer for AI agent-driven purchase flows.
Basis Theory processes payments through Stripe, Adyen and Checkout.com.
Basis Theory is founded in 2020 and headquartered in Mill Valley, CA, USA.
Basis Theory has raised 33M+ (Series B alone) in total (latest round: Series B, October 2025).
Get a read on where your own stack stands against Basis Theory and the rest of its category — what they built versus bought, which providers they use, and where the gaps in your own strategy and competitive set actually are.