“Can Strike become the full-service financial operating system for Bitcoin holders globally — owning the stack from buy/sell/custody through lending, payments, and business accounts?”
Founded in 2017 as Zap Solutions with a focus on Lightning Network tooling, Strike rebranded and pivoted to a consumer-facing Bitcoin financial platform. It expanded globally via a Checkout.com partnership in 2022, enabling fiat-to-Bitcoin on-ramps in 65+ countries. More recently, Strike has built toward becoming a full-service Bitcoin financial suite — adding bitcoin-backed lending, business accounts, and private client services — positioning itself as the financial OS for Bitcoin holders rather than a simple exchange.
Strike discloses Lead Bank as its banking provider, according to the Embedded Finance Index 2026.
Strike does not disclose a bank charter of its own; its banking services are provided through Lead Bank.
Strike processes payments through Checkout.com. Disclosed money-movement rails: ACH.
Strike uses Checkout.com for FX and cross-border payouts.
Strike's crypto products run on Strike (self-operated).
The Embedded Finance Index 2026 maps 7 layers in Strike's stack: Payments / PSP (Checkout.com); Money movement (ACH); Banking / BaaS (Lead Bank); Lending (Bitcoin-backed fixed-term loan (12-month) and Bitcoin-backed revolving line of credit); Sponsor bank (Lead Bank); FX & payouts (Checkout.com); Crypto (Strike (self-operated)).
Strike was founded by Jack Mallers and is founded in 2017, headquartered in Chicago, IL, USA.
Get a read on where your own stack stands against Strike 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.