Global PayTech Ventures Research
Investment Thesis
Global PayTech Ventures (GPT) exists to "improve the way the world transfers value." The firm's entire thesis is built on sector exclusivity: unlike generalist fintech investors who treat payments as one of several verticals, GPT's "singular focus is paytech," and the partners argue that this specialization gives them underwriting judgment that generalist fintech funds cannot match. The firm operates independently of a traditional institutional LP structure, which it frames as funding "without the (sometimes unrealistic) expectations of investors" that can distort founder decision-making at typical VC-backed companies.
Sector Focus
GPT invests exclusively in payment technology: payments infrastructure and processing (Silverflow), direct-debit and account-to-account payment networks (DRUO), SoftPOS / tap-to-pay merchant acceptance (Klearly), cross-border remittance and payment platforms (Paysend), and adjacent fintech marketplaces that touch payments and credit decisioning (Gibobs Allbanks). They do not appear to invest outside paytech and fintech-adjacent categories.
Stage Focus
The firm's own process page states they target "early stage paytech companies usually looking to raise seed, Series A, or Series B rounds." In practice, observed rounds span pre-seed (Klearly's first round) through growth-stage follow-ons (Paysend, which was already an established cross-border payments platform when GPT invested in 2021).
Check Size
Check size is not publicly disclosed on the firm's website or in press coverage. The process page notes GPT typically "funds a portion of the round" rather than owning entire rounds outright, consistent with a fund that leads but syndicates.
Lead Tendency
GPT is consistently described as lead investor in its announced deals: it led DRUO's 2025 seed round, led Klearly's 2023 seed round and its 2025 follow-on, and led Silverflow's €15M raise (with Picus Capital, Coatue, Crane Venture Partners, and Inkef participating). This is a firm that leads rounds rather than filling out syndicates.
Recent Activity
GPT has been active but selective, consistent with its stated philosophy of curated rather than volume-based investing (it explicitly contrasts itself with funds that "initiate 100+ investments expecting significant failure rates"). Per third-party trackers, GPT has made roughly 8 investments since founding in 2021, averaging about 2 per year, with 1 new investment as of early 2026 (DRUO, October 2025). The firm appears to still be actively deploying.
Portfolio Highlights
Confirmed portfolio companies with public funding announcements:
- Paysend (paysend.com) — global cross-border payments platform; GPT backing announced December 2021.
- Gibobs Allbanks (gibobs.com) — Madrid-based fintech marketplace for mortgages, loans, and financial-services matching; GPT investment announced May 2022.
- Klearly (klearly.nl) — Dutch SoftPOS / tap-to-pay app for merchants, later expanding into hospitality; GPT led the initial seed (June 2023) and a €6M follow-on (January 2025) to fund European expansion.
- Silverflow (silverflow.com) — cloud-native payment processing/acquiring platform; GPT led a €15M round in November 2023 alongside Picus Capital, Coatue, Crane Venture Partners, and Inkef.
- DRUO (druo.com) — direct-debit payment network connecting ~10,000 financial institutions across the US and Latin America; GPT led DRUO's seed round in October 2025.
Third-party trackers (Tracxn, PitchBook, Crunchbase) cite a total of roughly 8 portfolio companies; only 5 have public, source-backed details as of this research.
Team
- Javier Perez — Founder & Managing Partner. Spent roughly 25 years at Mastercard, including as President of Mastercard Europe, where he helped lead the Mastercard–Europay merger that preceded Mastercard's 2006 IPO (valued at ~$4B, later growing to over $350B). Before Mastercard, he ran Visa's EMEA business development office in London and worked on Spanish government-led recovery of state-owned financial institutions in the 1990s. Oversees new business development, marketing, and distribution at GPT.
- Daniel Perez — Co-Founder & Managing Partner. Responsible for the full investment process — sourcing, due diligence, deal structuring, and capital allocation — drawing on a Mastercard background and product management experience.
- Kristofer "Kriffy" Perez — Co-Founder & Managing Partner. Leads strategic advisory and customer innovation; prior experience spans Visa, Mastercard Advisors, Boston Consulting Group, and IBM, having contributed to 120+ fintech projects. Also a published thought leader in payments strategy.
GPT is effectively a family-run partnership (father and two sons), all with deep payments-industry pedigrees rather than generalist VC backgrounds.
Decision Process
GPT runs a five-step process: (1) screening meeting/pitch invitation, (2) investor meeting with product demo and non-confidential materials, (3) due diligence covering team background, track record, and merchant contracts, (4) term sheet negotiation, and (5) post-investment advisory with agreed-upon ongoing meetings. As a three-partner firm, decisions are made by partnership consensus rather than a solo GP or a formal investment committee.
Founder Preferences
The firm explicitly screens for CEOs who are "ambitious and commercially-minded" with demonstrated dedication, and states it prioritizes analytical, passionate founders who show humility and perseverance over any single technology bet. GPT also looks for differentiated technology, working prototypes, and existing clients at the time of investment — signaling a preference for founders who arrive with early commercial traction rather than pure pre-product bets.
Geographic Focus
Not explicitly stated on the website, but observed portfolio activity spans the US (DRUO, Paysend), the Netherlands (Klearly), Spain (Gibobs Allbanks), and the broader EU (Silverflow), consistent with a firm targeting paytech opportunities across North America and Europe rather than a single home geography. The firm itself is headquartered in Miami, Florida.