How Upgrade Scaled Without Building a Bank

Upgrade has grown into one of the largest consumer fintech platforms in the U.S., offering Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL), Personal Loans, Home Improvement Loans, Credit Cards, Auto Loans, and Mobile Banking to millions of Americans looking for straightforward, affordable financial products.

Cross River has been part of Upgrade's story since 2019. First, by providing a banking infrastructure for products like Rewards Checking and the Upgrade Card and later extending credit facilities to support Upgrade’s portfolio growth. Through this combination of infrastructure, APIs, and balance sheet solutions, the Upgrade-Cross River partnership has facilitated over $32 billion in consumer loans.

The problem

As demand for responsible, technology-driven credit products increased, Upgrade faced a critical challenge: securing stable, flexible capital capacity to sustain its rapid portfolio growth.

The solution

Cross River addressed both of Upgrade’s needs through our existing, integrated partnership.

New products, same infrastructure:

In 2019, Upgrade launched the Upgrade Card—a hybrid product combining credit card flexibility with installment loan economics. Cross River's card issuance and payment APIs powered the backend, transaction processing and settlement, with compliance support integrated into the bank’s governance framework.

A year later, Upgrade introduced Rewards Checking, a mobile-first account offering 2% cash back on everyday purchases like gas and groceries. Rewards Checking runs on Cross River's deposit and ACH infrastructure, within the same bank partnership.

The result: lending, cards, and deposits flowing through one integrated platform.

Funding that scales:

In 2026, Cross River's Principal Finance Group expanded its revolving credit facility from $150 million to $250 million, secured by Upgrade's Personal Credit Line assets. The structure was built by a team already familiar with the portfolio's performance and servicing approach.

As the originating bank, Cross River provides insights and recommendations to help fintechs ensure that their underwriting and compliance practices remain aligned with regulatory expectations.

The impact

For consumers:

The Upgrade-Cross River partnership has extended affordable credit and banking products to millions of mainstream Americans who might otherwise rely on high-cost alternatives. The Upgrade Card alone introduced a new category: combining credit card convenience with installment loan pricing, giving consumers a lower-cost way to manage larger purchases. Rewards Checking brought cash-back benefits typically reserved for premium accounts to everyday users, with 2% back on routine expenses like gas, groceries, and utilities.

For Upgrade:

Upgrade started with personal loans as its flagship product. Today, it offers six product lines, including four—Personal Loans, Home Improvement Loans, the Upgrade Card, and Rewards Checking—with Cross River serving as both the banking infrastructure provider (for cards and deposits) and/or capital partner (for lending products).

The expanded credit facility gives Upgrade's lending portfolio a stronger foundation for continued growth.

For the partnership:

The Cross River-Upgrade relationship now spans four product categories, two balance sheet arrangements, and six years of operating history. Cross River serves as the originating bank, the infrastructure provider, and the capital partner—a model for how bank-fintech partnerships work at scale.