Koch Disruptive Technologies has led a $105 million Series E funding round to help push financial technology company Upgrade Inc. to a valuation of $3.3 billion.
San Francisco-based credit company Upgrade, which has offerings that includes rewards paid in Bitcoin rather than cash, plans to use the capital to help make its flagship Upgrade Card product a mainstream credit card.
“We’re seeing rapid innovation in banking, and believe fintech, and neobanks in particular, will profoundly transform the banking industry to the greater benefit of consumers, Byron Knight, managing director of Koch Disruptive Technologies (KDT), said in a press release. “Upgrade has proven success in designing products that deliver more vale and a better experience to consumers, and we believe they are uniquely suited to be a market leader.”
According to the press release, Upgrade has provided more than $7 billion in credit through cards and loans since its start in 2017 and is on pace to do that much business in 2021 alone.
A differentiating aspect of the Upgrade Card is that it turns every balance into fixed-rate installment plans and offers rewards as the balance is paid down.
Chase Koch-led KDT is among the divisions of the Koch Investments Group at Wichita-based Koch Industries Inc.
