Tern

Tern provides the back-end infrastructure for businesses to issue virtual and physical prepaid cards, move money across borders via bank transfers and instant payouts, and manage ongoing compliance. The platform combines program management — from launch through day-to-day operations — with integrated KYC and business verification, so a client does not have to stitch together separate banking, issuing, and compliance vendors.

No. Tern is not a chartered bank and does not hold a card network license. It sits between end-clients and the underlying banking and network rails, providing the software orchestration layer that handles compliance, ledgering, and connectivity — allowing clients to launch programs without individually negotiating with sponsor banks or processors.

Tern's platform is designed for cross-border use. It supports both domestic card programs and international money flows, enabling clients to send and collect funds across multiple countries. The firm's marketing refers explicitly to 'global customers' and 'cross-border money movement,' suggesting a multi-jurisdictional compliance stack built from the start.

No public information indicates Tern operates an investment or venture arm. All available material describes Tern purely as an infrastructure provider — supplying the operational rails — rather than as an investor in its client companies.

Tern operates out of Atlanta Tech Village, one of the largest technology hubs in the Southeast, which provides access to payments talent and lower operating costs than San Francisco or New York. Atlanta has a deep legacy in financial transaction processing — firms like Global Payments, NCR, and First Data have long maintained major operations there — creating a local labor pool experienced in payments infrastructure.