Zaria raises USD 5.2 million to scale structured finance infrastructure

Zaria Systems, a US-based company building real-time infrastructure for mark-to-market credit and structured finance, has raised USD 5.2 million in a seed round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. The funding will support the development of infrastructure for structured finance and digital asset-backed lending markets.

The investment also supports Zaria’s pending application to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) to charter Zaria National Trust Bank (ZNTB).

Trust bank charter would consolidate deal services

ZNTB is planned as a special-purpose national bank limited to trust company operations and related activities. Zaria currently provides loan servicing, backup servicing, collateral management, and agency services to structured finance participants and digital asset-backed lenders.

If the OCC approves the application, these services would be brought together under one federally regulated trustee. Zaria says this would give transaction stakeholders a single regulated counterparty throughout a deal’s lifecycle, rather than requiring them to work with several separate providers.

Emily Barron, Zaria’s co-founder and CEO, said the funding would help the company accelerate growth and expand its existing services, including by growing its team and extending its technology. Aaron Frank, Partner, Fintech at Lightspeed Venture Partners, noted that Zaria is already working with structured finance and digital asset-backed lenders.

ZNTB’s organisers and management team bring experience in corporate trust, fintech, banking, ratings, and regulation. Their previous organisations include BNY Mellon, Barclays, Morgan Stanley, Moody’s, SoFi, Affirm, NYDIG, Block, and the OCC.

Real-time collateral monitoring for structured and tokenised lending

Zaria’s model reflects a shift in how collateral is monitored. Structured finance has traditionally used periodic, batch-based checks to monitor and verify collateral. According to Zaria, this approach is becoming less suitable as securities-backed, digital asset-backed, and tokenised lending call for real-time monitoring and automated margin calls.

The company’s infrastructure is designed to provide continuous oversight for lenders and other participants in structured transactions.

Zaria’s platform is live with partners including Ledn, Maple, Galaxy, Kraken, and Figure. Through these partnerships, it provides infrastructure for backup servicing, agency, collateral management, and node services. The platform supports warehouse facilities, forward flow loan sale programmes, and securitisations.

The seed round and the pending OCC application support the same plan: scaling services already in operation while seeking a federal trust charter that would bring them together under one regulated entity.