Alpaca Hits Unicorn Status with $150M Round to Scale Brokerage APIs Globally

Alpaca Secures $150 Million at Unicorn Valuation to Expand Global Brokerage API Platform

Tokyo-based fintech Alpaca, co-founded by entrepreneurs Yoshi Yokokawa and Hitoshi Harada, has reached a $1 billion valuation after raising $150 million in a recent funding round. The company aims to accelerate its vision of democratizing commission-free trading worldwide through developer-centric financial infrastructure.

Headquartered in Japan, Alpaca simplifies stock, options, and cryptocurrency integration for startups, algorithmic traders, and retail apps with minimal code. By streamlining compliance and technical hurdles typically associated with broker partnerships, its API platform handles real-time market data, KYC verification, and settlement across 20,000+ U.S. equities. Clients range from robo-advisors to social trading networks.

The new capital will drive expansion into Europe, Japan, and Southeast Asia—regions where fragmented brokerage services present significant demand for API solutions. Alpaca plans to double its engineering workforce and introduce features like margin trading, futures, and round-the-clock crypto support. Localized compliance frameworks for GDPR, MiFID II, and Japanese regulations are also in development.

The founders’ blend of Silicon Valley innovation and Tokyo-based execution has already enabled their platform to support over 5 million retail accounts. As traditional brokerage costs hinder growth, Alpaca’s infrastructure transforms trading capabilities into scalable revenue drivers—proving that agile development outpaces legacy consolidation. With every API integration, the company edges closer to its goal of redefining global finance.