Capital One Acquires Brex For A Steep Discount To Its Peak Valuation, But Early Believers Are Laughing All The Way To The Bank
Brex acquisition by Capital One slashes its valuation—but early backers are cashing in massive returns. Here’s how.
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Capital One Acquires Brex For A Steep Discount To Its Peak Valuation, But Early Believers Are Laughing All The Way To The Bank
Brex Acquisition: Why Early Investors Are Still Winning Big When Capital One announced it would acquire fintech unicorn Brex for $5.15 billion in cash and stock, the tech world buzzed—not just with surprise, but with a tinge of Silicon Valley schadenfreude. After all, Brex was once valued at $12.3 billion in 2022, meaning this deal represents less than half its peak worth. But while headlines focus on the “down round,” there’s a crucial detail many are missing: for Brex’s earliest investors, this isn’t a fire sale—it’s a home run. Credit: Google So why are founders and early backers celebrating despite the steep discount? And what does this deal reveal about the real economics of venture capital in today’s volatile market? The answer lies not in the final valuation, but in who got in first—and how much they paid. A Steep Discount, But Not a Loss On paper, Brex’s $5.15 billion acquisition price feels like a comedown. In 2022, the company raised a Series D-2 round at a staggering $12.3 billi…
