# Zach Perret

> Zach Perret is the co-founder and CEO of Plaid, the financial infrastructure company that quietly powers the apps half of America uses every day. He and co-founder William Hockey built Plaid from a hackathon project in 2013 into a $8B+ company connecting over 500 million bank accounts to thousands of financial apps - including Venmo, Robinhood, and Coinbase. After famously walking away from a $5.3B Visa acquisition in 2021 (called a 'blessing in disguise'), Perret rebuilt Plaid as an independent company, reaching $546M ARR and profitability before raising a $575M Series E in 2025. A symphony conductor's son from North Carolina, he runs Plaid like he leads: with timing, rhythm, and an eye on what everyone else is missing.

- **Role:** Co-Founder & CEO at Plaid
- **Organizations:** Plaid, Mischief 1 L.P., Duke University Board of Trustees
- **From:** Clemmons, North Carolina, USA
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.S. in Chemistry, Biology, and Physics, Duke University, Associate (professional experience), Bain & Company
- **Known for:** Co-founded Plaid, which connects 500M+ bank accounts to 8,000+ financial apps, More than 1 in 2 Americans have used Plaid, Built Plaid's core technology at a hackathon in under 24 hours (2013)

## Career timeline

- **2006** — Enrolled at Duke University; became President of Duke Student Union and served on Board of Trustees
- **2009** — Duke Research Fellow studying software control systems for optical microscopy and cancer cell research
- **2010** — Joined Bain & Company as Associate; met William Hockey, bonded over rock climbing and shared frustration with financial technology
- **2012** — Co-founded Plaid with William Hockey in Atlanta
- **2013** — Won TechCrunch Disrupt NY Hackathon with Rambler; the bank connectivity built for the hackathon became Plaid's core product. Raised $2.8M seed from Spark Capital, Google Ventures, and NEA
- **2014** — Raised $12.5M Series A from NEA; relocated Plaid to San Francisco
- **2016** — Raised $44M Series B at ~$200M valuation
- **2018** — Raised $250M Series C at $2.65B valuation, led by Mary Meeker (KPCB)
- **2020** — Visa announced $5.3B acquisition of Plaid; Perret briefly became a billionaire. Won Fortune 40 Under 40 in Finance.
- **2021** — DOJ blocked Visa acquisition on antitrust grounds; deal terminated January 12. Plaid raised $425M Series D at $13.4B valuation led by Altimeter Capital. Filed SEC paperwork for Mischief VC fund ($30M).
- **2022** — Listed on Forbes Billionaires List; laid off ~260 employees (20%) amid slower European growth
- **2024** — Plaid fraud tools grew 400%; payments revenue grew 250%. Spoke at Federal Reserve Bank fintech conference.
- **2025** — Raised $575M Series E at $6.1B valuation led by Franklin Templeton; Plaid reached $546M ARR growing 40% YoY and achieved full-year EBITDA profitability
- **2026** — Plaid employee share tender completed at $8B valuation; IPO widely anticipated

## Achievements

- Co-founded Plaid, which connects 500M+ bank accounts to 8,000+ financial apps
- More than 1 in 2 Americans have used Plaid
- Built Plaid's core technology at a hackathon in under 24 hours (2013)
- Grew Plaid to $546M ARR with 40% YoY growth
- Achieved full-year adjusted EBITDA profitability in 2025
- Walked away from a $5.3B Visa acquisition and rebuilt as an independent company worth $8B+
- Fortune 40 Under 40 in Finance (2020)
- Forbes Billionaires List (2022)
- Forbes 30 Under 30 Hall of Fame
- Won TechCrunch Disrupt NY 2013 Hackathon
- Raised $575M Series E in April 2025 from Franklin Templeton, Fidelity, NEA, Ribbit Capital
- Co-founded Mischief VC fund with investments in CoinTracker and NexHealth (both unicorns)
- Served on Duke University Board of Trustees at age 20

## Latest updates

- **2026-02** — Plaid completed employee share tender at $8B valuation, up 31% from April 2025 fundraise
- **2025-12** — Hosted Plaid's Fintech Predictions 2026 event alongside CTO Will Robinson
- **2025-05** — Featured in Ben Thompson's Stratechery interview on 'Plumbing Trust' and Plaid's role as financial infrastructure
- **2025-04** — Plaid raised $575M Series E at $6.1B valuation; Perret told CNBC IPO is 'absolutely on our path' but not in 2025
- **2025-02** — Fortune profile predicting 'fintech summer'; discussed open banking under Trump administration and CFPB uncertainty
- **2024-10** — Spoke at Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia's 8th Annual Fintech Conference on 'The New Age of Open Banking'

## Links

- Website: https://zachperret.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zperret/
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/zachperret

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/zach-perret
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-04-30