Brex is one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies in Finance.

Brex was already in the midst of a dramatic reinvention when Silicon Valley Bank collapsed in March 2023. The spend management platform, founded in 2017, had spent the prior year pivoting from a focus on offering corporate credit cards to startups to a software-as-a-service model encompassing a more holistic spend-management platform designed for enterprise customers. But Brex didn’t hesitate to rapidly spin up solutions for fleeing SVB customers, increasing FDIC insurance on its business accounts and offering a safe landing for 4,000 new accounts and more than $2 billion in deposits in less than a week.

As the dust settled, Brex continued its march toward SaaS success, growing software revenue 300% and overall revenue 50% in 2023. The company can now boast three revenue streams with more than $100 million in annual recurring revenue, signaling that its offerings can weather 2023’s macroeconomic headwinds. Brex is also incorporating AI to improve efficiency for its customers, which include DoorDash and Roblox, by incorporating an AI assistant launched in September 2023 to ameliorate doing expenses. If it keeps compiling wins, an IPO could be the next step.

Explore the full 2024 list of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies, 606 organizations that are reshaping industries and culture. We’ve selected the firms making the biggest impact across 58 categories, including advertising, artificial intelligence, design, sustainability, and more.

Brex was already in the midst of a dramatic reinvention when Silicon Valley Bank collapsed in March 2023. The spend management platform, founded in 2017, had spent the prior year pivoting from a focus on offering corporate credit cards to startups to a software-as-a-service model encompassing a more holistic spend-management platform designed for enterprise customers. But Brex didn’t hesitate to rapidly spin up solutions for fleeing SVB customers, increasing FDIC insurance on its business accounts and offering a safe landing for 4,000 new accounts and more than $2 billion in deposits in less than a week.

As the dust settled, Brex continued its march toward SaaS success, growing software revenue 300% and overall revenue 50% in 2023. The company can now boast three revenue streams with more than $100 million in annual recurring revenue, signaling that its offerings can weather 2023’s macroeconomic headwinds. Brex is also incorporating AI to improve efficiency for its customers, which include DoorDash and Roblox, by incorporating an AI assistant launched in September 2023 to ameliorate doing expenses. If it keeps compiling wins, an IPO could be the next step.

Explore the full 2024 list of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies, 606 organizations that are reshaping industries and culture. We’ve selected the firms making the biggest impact across 58 categories, including advertising, artificial intelligence, design, sustainability, and more.