Our Story

Mercantile – About Us – Our Story

Our Story

Mercantile Bank International (“MBI”) is a licensed financial institution, organized as an International Financial Entity under the laws of Puerto Rico, with the goal of improving our specialized clients’ global banking and payments experiences.

From its beginning, MBI has been a pioneer in the digital assets sector. As part of its original charter in 2019, MBI was granted the authority to custody digital assets, making it one of the first banks in the U.S. with such authority. A product of the vision of our CEO, Bo Collins, a former president of the New York Mercantile Exchange and an experienced entrepreneur and commodities trader, MBI was initially organized to serve as the clearing bank for a commodities exchange that was established to enable the trading of digital assets. However, volatility in digital asset prices, slower than expected institutional adoption of digital asset trading, and robust competition among incumbent exchanges led Mr. Collins to conclude that the Bank should pivot away from a business model focused solely on clearing digital assets.

To bring about this change, Mr. Collins recruited top-tier banking executives with extensive experience in banking, financial regulations and the broader financial markets. While still providing custody and settlement services for digital assets, MBI has now expanded its portfolio to include more traditional banking products, with a focus on investments, payments and custody services. With its new vision and capabilities, MBI leverages technology (proprietary and outsourced) to provide modernized banking services, unique investment options with attractive returns, and lower fees to clients.

Although MBI offers our customers traditional banking products and services, we are not just another bank. We offer a range of financial services designed to meet the needs of entrepreneurs and startup companies – especially those with a focus on clean technology, digital assets, and disruptive technological advances. More than a bank, we provide our partners with a mission to help innovators achieve their business and financial goals.