Is Brex, Mercury or Ramp a real bank?

No. All three are financial technology companies that work with partner banks. Mercury's deposits sit with Choice Financial Group and Column N.A.; Brex checking is provided by Column N.A.; Ramp checking is at First Internet Bank of Indiana. Mercury received conditional OCC approval for its own national bank in April 2026 but still runs on partner banks.

What does Capital One's purchase of Brex change for customers?

Capital One completed the acquisition on 7 April 2026, and Brex's site now describes Brex LLC as a wholly owned subsidiary of Capital One. Plans and pricing were unchanged when we checked in October 2026. Over time, expect product and underwriting to align with Capital One, so review terms at each renewal.

Can I use Mercury and Ramp together?

Yes, and many startups do. Mercury holds the operating cash and handles wires and ACH; Ramp issues cards, collects receipts and runs bill pay, funded from the Mercury account. Using Brex and Ramp together is usually redundant because both are spend platforms.

Is money in Treasury or investment accounts FDIC-insured?

No. Mercury Treasury, Brex Treasury and Ramp's Investment Account invest in money market funds or fixed-income portfolios, which are not bank deposits and are not FDIC-insured. They can carry SIPC protection, which is different. Keep operating cash in insured deposit accounts and move only true reserves into treasury products.

Which is best for a non-US founder with a Delaware company?

Mercury and Brex both accept US-incorporated companies with founders abroad, subject to their restricted-country lists and a US business address. Brex also requires a US EIN and, for funded startups, a $50,000 minimum cash balance. Check each provider's eligibility page before applying.

Brex vs Mercury vs Ramp 2026: Business Banking

Brex vs Mercury vs Ramp: the short version

This guide is for founders and finance leads at US-incorporated startups and small businesses deciding where to hold cash and how to manage company spend. The three products overlap in their marketing, but they started from different jobs: Mercury is banking first, Ramp is spend management first, and Brex combines both. Many companies end up using two of them.

Our default: Mercury for the operating account, Ramp for cards, expenses and bill pay. Choose Brex if you want banking and spend on one login and you meet its thresholds. The biggest change since spring 2026: Capital One completed its acquisition of Brex on 7 April 2026.

Best for	Pick
Pre-seed or seed startup	Mercury + Ramp (both free)
One platform for cash, cards and spend	Brex
Bootstrapped SMB, agency, ecommerce	Mercury + Ramp
Complex approvals, NetSuite, multi-entity	Ramp Plus or Brex Premium
Yield on reserves	Mercury Treasury, Brex Treasury or Ramp Investment Account
Non-US founder, Delaware company	Mercury (check eligibility)

Side-by-side comparison

Feature	Brex	Mercury	Ramp
Core product	Cards, spend, business account	Business banking	Cards, expenses, AP, AR
Is it a bank?	No; checking via Column N.A.	No; Choice Financial Group and Column N.A.	No; checking via First Internet Bank of Indiana
Free plan	Essentials, $0 per user	Mercury, $0	Free, $0 per user
Paid tiers	Premium $12/user/mo; Enterprise custom	Plus $35/mo; Pro $299/mo (annual)	Plus $15/user/mo + platform fee; Enterprise custom
Extended FDIC coverage	Vault, up to $6M via program banks	Up to $5M via sweep networks	Checking at an FDIC member bank; ask about sweep limits
Card	Corporate card, rewards	Debit card and IO credit card (1.5% cashback)	Corporate charge card
Domestic wires and ACH	Included	Free	Free via Bill Pay
Bill pay	Included	Free, unlimited	Included, with AI invoice capture
Treasury / yield	Brex Treasury (money market fund)	Treasury, $250K+ balance	Investment Account; 2% APY on checking
Accounting	Integrations on all plans; custom ERP on Premium	QuickBooks and Xero free; NetSuite on paid plans	QuickBooks and Xero free; NetSuite, Sage Intacct on Plus
Entities	Up to two on Essentials; multi-entity on Premium	Multiple accounts	Multi-entity on Plus

Pricing

All three advertise free core plans. They earn money on card interchange, deposits and add-on services, so the real cost question is when you need a paid tier.

Tier	Brex	Mercury	Ramp
Free	Essentials: $0	Mercury: $0	Free: $0
Mid	Premium: $12 per user/mo	Plus: $35/mo ($29.90 billed annually)	Plus: $15 per user/mo + platform fee by team size (20% off annually)
Top	Enterprise: custom	Pro: $299/mo billed annually	Enterprise: custom, annual billing
Notable fees	Not listed on the pricing page; ask about FX	1% FX fee on non-USD wires; $15 optional fee for "OUR" USD international wires	$0.65 per IRS 1099 filing

When you outgrow the free tiers, the triggers are usually NetSuite, multiple entities, complex approval chains and more than a handful of people submitting reimbursements. On Mercury, NetSuite automations and reimbursing more than five active users a month need a paid plan. On Ramp, NetSuite, Sage Intacct and multi-entity support sit in Plus. On Brex, multi-entity across US and international and custom ERP integrations sit in Premium.

Feature analysis

Banking and FDIC coverage

None of the three is a bank, so FDIC coverage comes from partner banks. Mercury spreads deposits through partner banks' sweep networks for up to $5M of FDIC coverage. Brex's business account combines checking at Column N.A. with Vault, which places funds at program banks for up to $6M of coverage. Ramp now offers a checking account at First Internet Bank of Indiana, Member FDIC, paying 2% APY on the operating balance when we checked. Rates are variable.

Mercury also took a step toward becoming a bank itself. In April 2026 the OCC gave conditional approval for Mercury Bank, N.A. It still needs further regulatory approvals and, for now, keeps operating through partner banks.

Corporate cards and rewards

Mercury offers a debit card and the IO credit card with 1.5% cashback, with limits tied to your Mercury balance. Ramp's corporate card is a charge card with strong spend controls; Ramp does not publish a single fixed cashback rate on its pricing page, so ask for your rate in writing. Brex advertises "competitive card rewards" and cards accepted in 210+ countries, with local-currency cards in 50+ countries. For most startups, the controls and receipt automation are worth more than a few tenths of a percent in rewards.

Expense management and bill pay

Ramp is the specialist. Its free plan already includes receipt matching, AI invoice extraction, approval workflows and payment by ACH, card, check or wire; Plus adds AI coding of line items, batch payments and procurement workflows. Brex is close, with AI-powered policy rules on Essentials and multi-level approval chains on Premium. Mercury's Bill Pay is free and now extracts invoice data automatically, which is enough for a simple AP process.

Treasury and yield

Mercury Treasury is available once you hold more than $250,000 across Mercury accounts. Brex Treasury invests in a government money market fund. Ramp's Investment Account is a managed fixed-income portfolio, advertised at up to 4.66% when we checked. All three are investment products, not deposits: they are not FDIC-insured and their yields move with rates. Use them for genuine reserves, not for next month's payroll.

Accounting integrations

All three connect to QuickBooks Online and Xero. The split is at NetSuite: Mercury's enriched NetSuite automations need a paid plan, Ramp puts NetSuite and Sage Intacct in Plus, and Brex offers customizable ERP integrations in Premium. If you expect to move to NetSuite within a year, test the sync on a sandbox before committing.

Onboarding and eligibility

Brex requires a US EIN, US incorporation and a US physical address, and asks funded startups for a $50,000 minimum cash balance. Mid-market companies applying for monthly card payments need more than $400,000 a month in revenue. Mercury accepts US-registered companies with founders around the world, except for founders living in restricted countries and certain industries. Expect compliance reviews at all three; an approval is never guaranteed.

Who should use which

Pre-seed and seed: Mercury for banking, Ramp for cards from day one. Both are free and the setup scales well past Series A.

Series A and B with a finance hire: Mercury plus Ramp Plus if you are on NetSuite or have several entities. Brex Premium if one platform and one vendor relationship matter more than best-of-breed.

Bootstrapped SaaS, agency or ecommerce: Mercury plus Ramp. Brex may be out of reach until you meet its cash or revenue thresholds.

Businesses that take cash or checks in person: Keep a traditional bank account for deposits alongside these tools.

Mid-market, multi-entity: Ramp Plus or Enterprise, or Brex Premium or Enterprise. Run a pilot on your real approval chain and ERP before choosing.

Non-US founders with a Delaware company: Start with Mercury, after checking the restricted-country list.

Setup checklist for a new startup

Whichever combination you choose, the first month decides how clean your books will be. This is the checklist we run with clients.

Open the operating account first. Mercury or Brex, with at least two admins so a single person's absence never blocks a payment.
Turn on extended coverage. Confirm the sweep or Vault program is active. Mercury enables its sweep by default on new accounts; check that existing accounts have opted in.
Separate reserves from operating cash. Keep enough for payroll and the next few months of bills in the operating account. Move only true reserves into a treasury or investment account.
Issue cards by person and by purpose. One card per employee plus virtual cards per vendor, with limits and receipt rules set before the first purchase.
Connect accounting on day one. Map card and bill pay transactions to your chart of accounts and test the sync on a few real transactions.
Set approval rules for bills. Two approvers above a threshold you choose, and payment release approval if your plan supports it.
Review FX costs. If you pay overseas suppliers, compare the provider's conversion fee with a specialist service before your first large transfer.

Our take as fractional CFOs

The tool matters less than the cash discipline around it. Three things we look at with clients.

Concentration risk. After 2023, no finance lead should hold all company cash in one place without knowing how it is insured. We map every balance to its legal home: which bank, whether it is a deposit or a fund, and the insured limit. Sweep coverage up to $5M or $6M is useful, but it depends on the program terms. Above that, split balances across providers.

Runway, not yield. A few points of yield on reserves is real money, but liquidity matters more. Decide how many months of burn must sit in instantly available deposits. Our guide on how much cash runway a founder should keep gives the ranges we use. Only the excess goes into treasury products.

Clean data for the close. The real saving from Ramp or Brex is in the month-end close: receipts attached, transactions coded, approvals logged. That feeds faster, more reliable management reporting. Ask how each tool codes transactions into your chart of accounts, and whether it posts to your general ledger daily.

Whatever you choose, connect the bank and card feeds to a weekly forecast. Our 13-week cash flow forecast template is a good start, and our cash forecasting service builds it into a weekly routine. If you also take card payments from customers, see our Stripe vs Square comparison.

Next step

If you want a CFO to review where your cash sits, how it is insured and how your spend stack feeds your reporting, book a free CFO diagnostic call. For ongoing support, see our fractional CFO service.