We’re delighted to partner with Gary Nolan and the ZeroRisk team as we announce the company’s $10M Series A led by MiddleGame Ventures.
As payments embed further into everyday workflows, real-time risk intelligence is shifting from a check-the-box and nice-to-have to a foundational infrastructure requirement. However, the legacy systems that acquirers (banks, payment processors, fintechs) rely on to manage risk across their merchant portfolios are static, questionnaire-driven and built on outdated monolithic architecture. Simply put, they are no longer fit for purpose. Acquirers are left to manage millions of merchants via an annual snapshot of risk, essentially flying blind in an environment where risks materialise in real-time and the costs of data breaches rise at pace.
Dublin-based ZeroRisk establishes a new category of real-time merchant risk intelligence for acquirers. The platform combines PCI compliance, continuous cyber risk monitoring and AI-driven remediation workflows into a single cloud-native platform providing acquirers with a 360-degree view of merchant risk on a continuous basis. Not only does this enable optimised risk management, but it opens new channels for acquirers to deliver genuine value-added services to their merchants and reduce reliance on non-compliance fees. At a time when traditional acquirers have returned c.2% annually to shareholders over the past three years vs. c.37% delivered by their digital-native competitors, unlocking new revenue streams beyond core processing is imperative as competition intensifies (BCG, 2025).
The tangible value ZeroRisk provides is illustrated by the calibre of Tier 1 payment institutions, including Bank of America, Global Payments, and Checkout.com, across the US and Europe already adopting the platform. This new round of funding will accelerate expansion across the institutional acquirer market alongside tech-first ISOs and continued investment in the product roadmap.
MiddleGame Co-Managing Partner Patrick Pinschmidt shared his thoughts:
“The ZeroRisk team brings a unique combination of commercial and technical expertise, reinforced by working hand-in-hand with leading payment providers. As former operators in the space, they understand the fundamental pain points firsthand and have built technology that transforms a critical financial services workflow, making it more intuitive and seamless for payment providers and merchants alike. We’re thrilled to be partnering with Gary and the team as they build the new standard for this critical function.”
You can read more about ZeroRisk and funding round here.
