Yaspa, a London-based payments fintech serving the iGaming sector, has secured $12 million (£9 million) in a funding round led by Discerning Capital. The investment is set to accelerate Yaspa’s expansion into the United States, where the company recently incorporated a US entity headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
Yaspa provides instant payment and identity verification solutions through its proprietary Intelligent Payments platform. By leveraging open banking and AI, the company aims to deliver real-time payments alongside enhanced customer intelligence, helping regulated businesses optimise cash flow while embedding native player protection measures.
The funding round also included participation from Metavallon and TechStars Ventures. Discerning Capital, known for backing companies across online gambling, sports, media and technology, cited Yaspa’s proven growth in European markets and the scalable potential of account-to-account payments (A2A) for regulated gambling operators worldwide.
According to a 2024 Markets and Data report, the US open banking market is expected to expand at a CAGR of 22.5% from 2024 to 2031, reaching USD 35.79 billion by the end of the period. Yaspa’s entry into this market comes as operators seek lower costs, fewer chargebacks and more robust responsible gaming integrations—advantages A2A payments are positioned to deliver.
The latest capital injection will support Yaspa’s product rollouts in the US and deepen its presence across other regulated markets, reinforcing its role as a payments provider to the global iGaming industry.
Yaspa is led by CEO James Neville, who co-founded the company in 2017 after having previously served as a CTO at Worldpay.
He said: “This significant investment marks a major milestone for Yaspa. It enables us to take our proven technology into a new market at pace – hiring a local team, building strategic partnerships and adapting our platform to meet the specific needs of operators.
“We’re looking forward to supporting businesses that want to lead on compliance, player safety and user experience as the market matures.”
David Williams, Partner at Discerning Capital, who will be joining the Yaspa board following the transaction said: “We are excited to be partnering with Yaspa to help them expand deeper into regulated gambling.
“The high-risk nature of gambling payments makes it an area in need of innovation and we believe Yaspa addresses two of the biggest issues: chargebacks and player protections. We believe that any operator who evaluates Yaspa’s A2A product versus their existing payments provider will end up adding Yaspa.”
