UK fintech Curve, flush with cash, aims for US expansion | Payment source

Fresh from receiving a $1 billion credit line from Credit Suisse, Curve is looking to accelerate its position in a race among UK fintechs to shake up the US financial services market.

Curve , which specializes in an all-in-one payment card that allows consumers to store multiple accounts, this week secured a $1 billion credit line from Credit Suisse, a rare infusion into what has largely been a correction year for fintech credit. Along with other UK payment technology firms such as Wise and Revolut, Curve is diversifying its product base to gain share in the US against Square, PayPal and traditional buy-in banks.

Amanda Orson, Curve’s US CEO, is at the center of the battle. “We’re looking at new ways to let consumers better deal with the economy,” Orson said.

The technology investor and advisor, with a background in military training, joined Curve in 2019 to lead the firm’s US and crypto expansion. One of her first tasks was to select a headquarters for Curve’s US operations, considering Charlotte and Austin before settling on New York, where Curve opened its office in 2020. Curve hired a product team and began enrolling users in September 2021 .The fintech formally launched in the US in March 2022, and added a crypto rewards program in April.

The company plans to use the Credit Suisse line to expand Curve Flex in the EU and US, along with a direct line of credit that can be accessed before a transaction. Curve also wants to launch a loan product in the app and in the browser buy now/pay later in 2023.

Curve Flex allows consumers to split Curve transactions made with any merchant and any card into monthly installments. Curve Flex was originally launched in the UK, branded as Swipe Now to Pay Later, allowing payments to be split into three, six, nine or 12 monthly instalments.

These new and planned products join legacy Curve services such as “back in time” feature, which allows consumers to retroactively change the card on file for an older payment. Curve will seek to use card flexibility as its differentiator against other payments fintechs that are adding services to bolster its U.S. expansion.

“We are a capital management tool,” Orson said. “Making a dynamic change is something people love.”

Curve also relies on crypto rewards to grow its audience. It allows consumers to get 1% cash back – either in crypto or regular currency – regardless of the underlying card used to fund the purchase. This type of rewards program could appeal to consumers who are otherwise reluctant to invest directly in crypto, according to Orson.

“I would say the market is less excited about crypto than they were earlier in the year,” Orson said, adding that Curve is rare in that it doesn’t tie its crypto rewards to a centralized exchange. “So we’re impervious to what’s happened in crypto.”

Among other UK fintechs, Revolut has added shopping, in-store payment technology, stock trading and money transfers. Wise, formerly TransferWise, entered into a partnership with data aggregator earlier this year Plaid; and Monzo moved out of beta in February.

Consumers and merchants will appreciate the flexibility of Curve’s “all-in-one” model, according to Daniel Keyes, analyst at Javelin Strategy & Research’s payments practice. As for installment loans or BNPL, which has become more competitive, Curve’s ability to let consumers manage which card they use will be attractive, he said, adding that among other BNPL providers, American Express and JPMorgan Chase also offer “retroactive” BNPL .

“Retailers can drive more sales with a more flexible BNPL option for consumers,” Keyes said.

Where Curve may have challenges is in the work required to switch cards, Keyes said.

Consumers have become accustomed to a “stored credential” world where payment is almost invisible – whatever card they used to sign up for a service is what they keep using until it expires. Even when selecting buy now/pay later for specific purchases, the consumer does not need to change the default payment option for subsequent transactions.

In contrast, Curve’s all-in-one concept asks consumers to actively decide which account they use every time they make a purchase.

“The consumer has to do more work,” Keyes said. “With [other BNPL choices] you select the BNPL app and it’s over.”

Prior to her role in driving Curve’s US growth, Orson was an investor in more than a dozen startups in crypto, fintech and other categories. She is also a 2003 graduate of The Citadel, a military college in South Carolina, at a time when it was rare for women to attend.

“I went through everything you could imagine,” Orson said. “I was one of the first female cadets and I was also gay. This was still in the days of ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell.’

The Citadel did not return a request for comment by deadline. Women have attended the military academy since 1995, following a legal battle that forced the college to accept women. The first cadet, Shannon Faulker, was subordinate sexist attacks and required an escort from federal marshals to enter the school. In 2018, the school’s top cadet was a woman.

“The position has softened“, said Orson.

The “adversarial” military environment prepared her well to deal with gender gap issues that can come with a career in business, financial services and technology, Orson said. Her experience also created a tight-knit group of colleagues. “We’ve been able to help each other over the last 20 years.” she said.