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APIs · head to head

Akana vs Unit

Akana logo

Akana

APIs

Enterprise API lifecycle management platform

From
$2500/monthly
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite
Unit logo

Unit

APIs

Banking as a service platform for embedding deposit accounts, cards and payments, with a sponsor bank behind it

From
On request
Rated
-
Full reviewWebsite

The short version

  • Each has a real cost: Akana owned by Perforce and sold within their portfolio rather than independently, and akana.com redirects to perforce.com; Unit your product depends on a sponsor bank you do not contract with directly, and 2024 showed what that means: Thread Bank received an FDIC enforcement action naming its banking as a service programmes and Blue Ridge Bank went under an OCC consent order and offboarded fintech partners.
  • They diverge on capability: Akana covers API Lifecycle Management, Unit covers Deposit accounts.
  • Prices and features above were last checked on 31 August 2026.

Where they differ

Only the attributes on which Akana and Unit actually diverge.

Attributes where Akana and Unit differ
AttributeAkanaUnit
Starting price$2500/monthlyOn request
Pricing modelsubscriptionquote
PlatformsCloud, On-premise, HybridWeb, iOS, Android
Founded2001Unknown

Identical on both: free tier (No), user rating (Not yet rated), category (APIs).

What each one covers

Drawn from each product's published feature list. An absence here means we hold no record of it - not that the product lacks it.

Only in Akana

  • API Lifecycle Management
  • API Security
  • Governance Controls
  • OAuth
  • SAML
  • LDAP
  • Active Directory
  • Cloud support

Only in Unit

  • Deposit accounts
  • Card issuing
  • Payments
  • White label components
  • Compliance operations
  • Lending
  • Programme reporting
  • Sandbox

What people use each for

The jobs each tool is most often brought in to do.

Akana

  • API lifecycle management across REST, SOAP and GraphQLnot Unit
  • Applying OAuth, JWT and SAML policies at the gatewaynot Unit
  • Running the same platform on-premises, in Kubernetes or across cloudsnot Unit
  • Developer portal and API monetisationnot Unit
  • Monitoring API traffic and enforcing quotasnot Unit

Unit

  • A vertical SaaS platform for contractors that wants to hold customer funds and issue expense cards without pursuing a charternot Akana
  • A payroll or benefits platform embedding accounts so employees can be paid ahead of schedulenot Akana
  • A marketplace that wants seller balances to sit in real accounts under its own brand rather than as ledger entries at a processornot Akana
  • A company that needs interchange revenue from a card programme to make the unit economics of its core product worknot Akana

Where each one falls short

Documented limitations, not opinions. Every one is a constraint you would hit in normal use.

Akana

  • Owned by Perforce and sold within their portfolio rather than independently, and akana.com redirects to perforce.com
  • Pricing is not published; only a 30 day trial is offered

Unit

  • Your product depends on a sponsor bank you do not contract with directly, and 2024 showed what that means: Thread Bank received an FDIC enforcement action naming its banking as a service programmes and Blue Ridge Bank went under an OCC consent order and offboarded fintech partners.
  • Programme approval by the bank is a separate gate from signing with Unit, and it can add months and impose product restrictions that were not visible during the commercial conversation.
  • Compliance obligations are shared but the operational load lands on you, and platforms consistently underestimate the staffing needed for disputes, escalations and the bank ongoing oversight requests.
  • Pricing is unpublished and blends platform fees, per-account and per-transaction charges and interchange sharing, which makes it hard to model unit economics before you have volume and easy to be surprised by the minimum.
  • Migrating a live deposit programme to a different provider or bank is extremely disruptive because it involves moving customer accounts and card credentials, so switching costs are far higher than for ordinary software.

Pricing, plan by plan

Akana

$2500/monthly
  • Professional$2500/monthly
    • API Gateway
    • Developer Portal
    • Basic analytics
  • Enterprise$5000/monthly
    • Advanced governance
    • Multi-cloud support
    • Premium support
  • Custom$undefined/monthly
    • Custom solutions
    • Dedicated support
    • SLA guarantee

Unit

On request
  • Unit Banking as a Service$undefined/year
    • Platform fee plus per-account and per-transaction charges, quoted
    • Interchange sharing arrangements negotiated per programme
    • Minimum commitment typical

Which should you pick?

Choose Akana if

  • You need api lifecycle management.
  • You work on Cloud, On-premise, Hybrid.
  • You also want api security.
Akana review

Choose Unit if

  • You need deposit accounts.
  • You work on Web, iOS, Android.
  • You also want card issuing.
Unit review

Questions people ask

Is Akana or Unit better?
Neither clearly leads. Akana starts at $2500/monthly and Unit at On request, and user ratings are close enough to be indistinguishable. Choose on capability and platform support.
Which is cheaper, Akana or Unit?
Akana starts at $2500/monthly and Unit at On request.
Does Akana or Unit run on more platforms?
Akana runs on Cloud, On-premise, Hybrid. Unit runs on Web, iOS, Android.
What is Akana best used for?
Akana is most often used for api lifecycle management across rest, soap and graphql, applying oauth, jwt and saml policies at the gateway, running the same platform on-premises, in kubernetes or across clouds, developer portal and api monetisation. Of those, api lifecycle management across rest, soap and graphql and applying oauth, jwt and saml policies at the gateway are not what Unit is typically brought in for.
What can Akana do that Unit cannot?
Akana covers API Lifecycle Management, API Security, Governance Controls, OAuth. Unit covers Deposit accounts, Card issuing, Payments, White label components.

Answered from the vendors’ own pages

Akana: What does Akana API Platform include?

Akana provides mediation and integration capabilities for creating easy-to-consume API products from API code, with features for API governance, security, and operational management.

Source
Unit: Who actually holds the money?

A chartered partner bank, not Unit. Deposits sit at the sponsor bank and FDIC insurance flows from that bank, so its condition is your condition.

Akana: How does Akana help secure APIs?

Akana addresses the security challenges that come with more APIs and more endpoints, providing tools for enterprise API governance and compliance management.

Source
Unit: What happened with Unit sponsor banks in 2024?

Thread Bank received an FDIC enforcement action that explicitly named its banking as a service and lending as a service programmes, and Blue Ridge Bank was under an OCC consent order from January 2024 and offboarded fintech partners. Blue Ridge exited the order in late 2025.

Unit: What does Unit cost?

Not published. Expect a platform fee, per-account and per-transaction charges, an interchange share and a minimum commitment.

Unit: Do we need our own compliance team?

Yes. Unit supplies tooling and the bank sets the rules, but disputes, escalations and evidence for bank oversight require named people on your side.

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