Tether’s $15 million funding for Mural backs AI payment controls

Mural secured a $15 million Series A funding round led by Tether, with the capital supporting infrastructure designed to let businesses grant AI agents permission to transfer funds within set boundaries. The financing expands the stablecoin issuer’s investment in payment technology beyond stablecoin issuance.

According to Mural’s announcement on October 20, 2026, North Island Ventures joined existing backers in participating in the round, which lifts the New York-based firm’s cumulative funding to $28 million. The company intends to put the money toward growing internationally and enhancing its banking, payment and compliance offerings.

Mural was launched in 2022 by Sinclair Toffa and Chris Fernandes, both previously engineers at Palantir, and it provides fintechs and other platforms with infrastructure covering payments, account administration, identity verification and compliance needs spanning both conventional banking rails and blockchain networks.

Among its clients are payroll provider Deel, browser maker Opera and fintech company Axexo, all of which rely on Mural’s infrastructure to provide accounts that hold dollars, local currencies and stablecoins without needing to run separate systems for each payment type.

Tether’s funding backs Mural’s AI payment controls

Mural lets companies place transaction limits on AI-driven payments, restrict permitted counterparties and demand extra approval above specified thresholds. Those controls govern which payments software can initiate independently and which need further authorization.

The technology supports “agentic finance”: AI systems initiating and executing financial transactions for people or businesses. Mural’s approach connects banking services, payment networks and blockchains while providing a consolidated record of financial activity.

Mural reported processing $2.1 billion in payments for users in 128 countries since launching its application programming interface in 2025. Its payment volume so far in 2026 is nearly six times the total recorded in 2025.

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino pointed to Mural’s experience linking enterprise software and stablecoin payment services as a major consideration behind the investment.

“As agents start moving money, that connection to the banks, payment networks and compliance systems the world still runs on becomes essential,” Ardoino said in the statement.

Article produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence and reviewed by the editorial team.