Without a map, a leading fintech innovator known for its transformative co-branded credit card solutions, announced a $30 million growth investment round led by Activant Capital, with participation from new and existing investors, including Mischief (the fund co-founded by Zach Perret of Plaid), Industry Ventures, Thayer Ventures, Assurant and American Express. This brings Cardless’ total equity funding to date to more than $90 million. Despite industry challenges such as rising interest rates and inflation, Cardless has seen revenue grow more than 10x since the start of 2023.
The new financing will support the company’s continued development of industry-leading co-branded credit card and loyalty products, continued recruitment of engineering and operations talent, and expansion into department stores. retail, e-commerce and SMEs. Cardless is the only fintech to power cards on the three largest global payment networks: Visa, Mastercard and American Express and one of the few fintechs in the United States to offer a Visa Infinite product, the most popular Visa card, through its platform. more premium. variant.
“Over the past 12 months, we have been able to design products for some of the best brands in the world, including Qatar Airways and Alibaba,” said Michael Spelfogel, co-founder and president of Cardless. These brands chose us because of our differentiated approach to the entire co-branded experience. From integrated service to leveraging a brand’s data for personalized sign-up offers, Cardless delivers an experience that traditional banks and other fintechs can’t match. We will use this funding to further strengthen a world-class team, allowing us to scale new and existing programs.
Cardless has grown rapidly, outpacing its competitors and building significant momentum. Over the past year, the company tripled its gross transaction value (GTV) and quintupled its annual recurring revenue (ARR). Cardholder numbers have doubled in the past six months and its premium co-branded cards average nearly 20 transactions per month, reflecting strong premium behavior. With a global presence working with brands on four continents, Cardless continues to lead in co-branded card innovation and growth.
In 2024, Cardless continued to expand its co-branded credit card portfolio with a series of high-profile launches. The company has partnered with major airlines like Avianca and Qatar, the latter of which won the World’s Best Airline award for the 8th time at the World Airline Awards 2024, managed by Skytrax. These additions build on Cardless’ existing partnerships with LATAM and TAP Air Portugal, bringing the total number of co-branded partner airlines to four. Additionally, Cardless ventured into the business and e-commerce space by partnering with Alibaba to introduce its first business credit card, designed for small and medium-sized businesses.
“Cardless is tackling one of the largest fintech markets that has historically been woefully underserved,” said Andrew Steele, co-founder of Activant Capital. “Before Cardless, the world’s biggest brands were reluctant to launch credit cards because the customer experience offered by traditional banks did not meet their standards. Cardless has taken the industry head on and launched cards with some of the most sought-after brands on the market. Cardless has built the only integrated platform capable of serving both consumers and SMBs and we’re excited to redouble our efforts as they continue to develop great programs for some of the best companies in the world.