Sera vs BVNK: How they actually compare
After Mastercard's acquisition of BVNK, a lot of teams are re-examining their settlement stack. BVNK is a licensed payment service provider — a regulated front door for moving money in and out of stablecoins. Sera is the protocol underneath the FX step: non-custodial, fee-free, and built so the integrator keeps the spread. They are complementary more often than they are competitive.
Sera vs BVNK, side by side
| Sera | BVNK (Mastercard-owned) | |
|---|---|---|
| Settlement model | Non-custodial protocol | Licensed payment service provider |
| Custody | You / your users keep custody | BVNK holds custody |
| Protocol / platform fee | 0 bps | PSP pricing (volume-tiered) |
| FX spread captured by | Liquidity provider (can be you) | BVNK |
| Licensing / certifications | Owned by integrator | 25+ licenses, ISO 27001, SOC 2 Type II |
| Corridor coverage | 120+ currencies, 600+ stablecoins, 30,000+ pairs | Regulated fiat ↔ stablecoin across major markets |
| Integration surface | Smart contract + MCP for agents | REST API + hosted flows |
| Time to settle | Sub-300ms median (on-chain) | Minutes (custodial routing) |
| Best for | Teams with their own license or partner PSP | Teams that need licensed payments out of the box |
| Ownership | Independent protocol | Acquired by Mastercard (2026) |
When to choose Sera
- You hold your own license, or work with a partner PSP, and want to keep more of the FX spread.
- You want non-custodial settlement — funds never leave your or your users' wallets until on-chain settlement clears.
- You're routing between non-USD stablecoin pairs and want to skip the double USD hop.
- You're optimizing unit economics at scale and the platform fee is material.
When to choose BVNK
- You need licensed payment services with stablecoins out of the box — BVNK's 25+ licenses, ISO 27001, and SOC 2 Type II are best-in-class for regulated PSPs.
- You don't want to own custody, KYC, or regulatory reporting.
- You want a single regulated counterparty rather than assembling the stack yourself.
- Mastercard-backed counterparty assurance matters to your risk team.
Pricing, side by side
Illustrative: $10,000 USD → MXN settlement.
| Sera | BVNK | |
|---|---|---|
| Platform / PSP fee | $0 | Volume-tiered PSP pricing |
| FX spread | $5–$40 (5–40 bps, paid to LP — can be you) | Included in quoted rate; captured by BVNK |
| Gas | $0.01–$0.50 (L2) | Abstracted |
| Where the spread goes | To you, if you provide liquidity | To the PSP |
Integrating Sera
Sera is the FX-settlement primitive. Your licensed entity (or partner PSP) handles custody, KYC, and on/off-ramp; you call Sera only for the stablecoin ↔ stablecoin conversion, and the spread accrues to your liquidity.
Integrating BVNK
BVNK is a regulated, full-stack PSP. You integrate one licensed counterparty that owns custody, compliance, and fiat rails — less to assemble, in exchange for the platform fee and the FX spread.
Frequently asked questions
- Is Sera a BVNK alternative?
- For the FX-settlement step, yes. For licensed payment services — custody, KYC, regulated fiat rails — no. Sera is the protocol layer; BVNK is the licensed PSP layer. Many teams use both.
- Can I use Sera if I don't have a payments license?
- Sera itself is non-custodial infrastructure with no fee, but moving fiat in and out typically needs a licensed entity. Teams either hold their own license or pair Sera with a partner PSP that handles the regulated edges.
- What changed after the Mastercard acquisition?
- BVNK gains Mastercard-scale distribution and counterparty assurance. That strengthens BVNK as a regulated PSP and is a reason to reconsider where the FX spread economics sit in your stack — which is exactly the layer Sera addresses.
- Why would I keep the FX spread instead of paying a PSP?
- On Sera the spread accrues to whoever provides liquidity. If you LP your own treasury against your own flow, the spread becomes revenue rather than cost — often the single biggest line item in cross-border unit economics.
Use Sera as your FX settlement layer
Keep custody and KYC where they are. Plug Sera in for the on-chain currency conversion and capture the FX spread on your own flow.