Key Takeaways

• Farooq Malik, CEO of Rain, leverages tech and finance experience to make stablecoins practical for businesses, DAOs, and crypto-native companies. 

• Malik began at Salesforce as a software engineer, gaining technical expertise that shaped his later work in fintech and blockchain product leadership. 

• Rain has raised over $338M, including pre-seed, seed, Series A, and a $1.95B Series B, funding growth for DAOs and crypto-native clients.

Farooq Malik serves as the CEO and co-founder of Rain, a fintech company specializing in corporate credit and expense management powered by stablecoin technology. Prior to Rain, Malik held key product leadership roles at prominent fintech and crypto firms, including Blockchain.com and Merrill Lynch, and also gained software engineering experience at Salesforce. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) from the University of California, Berkeley, where he first connected with his future co-founder, Charles Naut.

Early Career and Professional Background

A Career in Building Technology

After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley, Malik began his career at Salesforce as a Software Engineer on the core platform team. There, he worked on large-scale, mission-critical systems, gaining hands-on experience in building software that powers enterprise operations. The skills and hands-on experience Malik gained at Salesforce became a key foundation as he explored the fast-moving worlds of fintech and blockchain.

Transition to Financial Product Management

Malik’s career changed course when he moved into product management within the financial sector. At Merrill Lynch, he worked as a Product Manager in the institutional trading division, focusing on global markets trading platforms. This role gave him exposure to the inner workings of financial infrastructure, particularly the challenges of delivering reliable tools for institutional traders. The experience gave him a practical understanding of how traditional finance operates, providing insights that would later inform his approach to bridging the gap between crypto and conventional financial services.

Diving into Crypto and DAO Challenges

Continuing his journey into digital assets, Malik joined Blockchain.com as Head of Product, where he led strategy for the company’s retail wallet and exchange offerings. This position offered a front-row view of the unique hurdles faced by crypto-native organizations and Decentralized Autonomous Organizations (DAOs). 

Despite holding substantial on-chain treasuries, these entities often struggled to access basic financial services such as corporate credit cards. Recognizing this gap in financial infrastructure became a critical turning point in Malik’s vision for the future of crypto finance.

Founding Rain: Bridging On-Chain and Off-Chain Finance

In May 2022, Malik co-founded Rain alongside Charles Naut, who serves as CTO. Rain is a financial infrastructure company that provides corporate card and expense management solutions tailored for businesses, DAOs, and other organizations operating with digital assets. 

Its mission is to create the “financial plumbing” that connects on-chain treasuries with the off-chain economy, enabling organizations to spend stablecoins on everyday business expenses, from software subscriptions to travel and hardware, without relying on traditional banking systems.

Origins and Early Insights from SignandWire

The idea for Rain originated from an earlier side project, SignandWire.com, which Malik and Naut developed to streamline fundraising by integrating payment capabilities directly into e-signature workflows. While working on this tool, they experienced firsthand the slow and inefficient nature of traditional payment methods such as ACH and wire transfers. 

A key moment came when a user requested the ability to invest in USDC, a stablecoin. After enabling this functionality, Malik and Naut consistently received feedback from web3 founders highlighting the difficulty of managing operational expenses with crypto assets. These real-world insights directly shaped Rain’s vision, laying the groundwork for a platform that addresses the growing financial infrastructure needs of the digital economy.

Rain Secures $338M in Funding

Rain has secured over $338 million in funding through a series of investment rounds from prominent venture capital firms. The company began with a $3 million pre-seed round in May 2022, followed by a $6 million seed round in November 2023 led by Lightspeed Venture Partners, with contributions from Coinbase Ventures and Uniswap Labs Ventures. 

In March 2025, Rain raised $27 million in a Series A round led by Norwest Venture Partners, with participation from Lightspeed, Galaxy Ventures, and The General Partnership. The company’s momentum continued into January 2026, when it completed a $1.95 billion Series B round. These funds have been directed toward expanding Rain’s team and building infrastructure to support its growing client base, which includes DAOs, crypto-native organizations, and global businesses managing substantial on-chain treasuries.

How Rain Uses Stablecoins for Payments

In a January 29, 2026, interview on the Leaders In Payments Podcast, Farooq Malik, CEO and co-founder of Rain, discussed how the company uses stablecoin technology for payments and card issuance. He explained that Rain merges card network operations with blockchain-based settlement to address limitations in traditional fintech systems. 

As a principal member of Visa, Rain can sponsor card programs directly and settle transactions independently of banks, enabling payments outside standard banking hours and reshaping liquidity management in card flows.

Rain’s Vision for Digital Payments

Farooq Malik is passionate about making digital assets practical for everyday business. Drawing on his experience at Salesforce, Merrill Lynch, and Blockchain.com, he co-founded Rain with Charles Naut to bridge the gap between on-chain treasuries and traditional finance. Rain combines card network capabilities with blockchain-based settlement, letting crypto-native companies and DAOs pay for software, travel, hardware, and other expenses directly with stablecoins. Malik’s goal is to create the financial “plumbing” that makes digital assets usable, reliable, and flexible, reshaping how liquidity flows in the digital economy.

Final Thoughts

Farooq Malik’s journey shows his commitment to making digital assets practical for everyday business. Drawing on his experience in tech, finance, and crypto, he co-founded Rain to help DAOs and crypto-native companies bridge the gap between on-chain funds and real-world expenses. By combining blockchain settlement with card programs, Malik is building the tools that make digital assets usable, flexible, and reliable for the modern economy. His work is helping redefine how businesses manage money in the digital age, making crypto a seamless part of everyday operations.