Imprint Raises $150 Million In Series D Funding Round

Imprint, a fintech company specializing in co-branded credit cards and loyalty programs, has raised $150 million in its latest Series D funding round. This round, led by Khosla Ventures, values the company at $1.2 billion, marking it as a unicorn and doubling its valuation from the previous Series C.

Imprint’s Series D round represents a significant milestone in the fintech sector, particularly for companies focused on modernizing co-branded financial products. Founded in 2020, the New York-based company has positioned itself as an alternative to legacy banks by offering brands customizable credit and loyalty solutions that integrate seamlessly into their apps and websites. This latest investment comes amid rapid business expansion, with Imprint achieving a AAA investment rating from Fitch Ratings for its inaugural $300 million securitization earlier in the year. The round highlights investor confidence in Imprint’s ability to disrupt traditional issuers like Synchrony and Citi, especially as brands seek more control over customer experiences and data.

The round was spearheaded by Khosla Ventures, with Keith Rabois, Managing Director, emphasizing Imprint’s technological edge in speed and customization. Other backers, such as Thrive Capital (where Imprint was initially incubated), bring continuity from prior rounds. The $1.2 billion post money valuation reflects Imprint’s growth trajectory, up from $600 million in its October 2024 Series C. This valuation surge suggests the market views Imprint’s model (combining payments, rewards, and AI) as highly scalable, even in a competitive fintech landscape.

Proceeds from the round will accelerate investments in Imprint’s core platform, ImprintCore, which provides brands with full control over user experiences, data, and innovation. Key areas include expanding beyond credit into debit, secured cards, and flexible financing options to broaden appeal. Additionally, funds will enhance AI and automation to maintain efficiency, as evidenced by nearly 300% business growth in the past year with less than 20% headcount increase. Imprint aims to strengthen its Rewards Network, connecting brands with reward focused users, and power partner loyalty programs for higher engagement and spend.

Imprint’s metrics underscore its momentum: brands migrating to its platform report 2x higher wallet share, 8x lifetime value increases for cardholders, and 20% more spend compared to legacy programs. Recent partnerships with Rakuten, Booking.com, Crate & Barrel, Fetch, H-E-B, Brooks Brothers, and Turkish Airlines demonstrate its appeal to diverse sectors like retail, travel, and e-commerce. With 160 employees, the company leverages technology to scale without proportional hiring, positioning it well for future growth.

Imprint Payments Inc., a New York-headquartered fintech startup founded in 2020 by Daragh Murphy and Gaurav Ahuja, has emerged as a key player in the co-branded credit card and loyalty space. The company’s latest Series D funding round secured $150 million at a $1.2 billion valuation, catapulting it to unicorn status. This achievement not only doubles its valuation from the prior Series C but also underscores the growing demand for innovative financial platforms that empower brands to foster deeper customer loyalty amid shifting consumer behaviors.

Imprint was co-founded by Irish-born Daragh Murphy, who holds a law degree from University College Dublin and previously served as vice president of operations and strategy at WeWork, and Gaurav Ahuja, who also chairs the company and has ties to Thrive Capital. Incubated at Thrive, Imprint addresses a core pain point in the retail and e-commerce sectors: the limitations of traditional co-branded credit cards issued by large banks. These legacy programs often lack customization, seamless integration, and data ownership for brands, leading to suboptimal customer engagement.

Imprint’s proprietary platform, ImprintCore, flips this model by providing an integrated technology stack that enables brands to design, launch, and manage financial products (such as credit cards, debit cards, and loyalty experiences) directly within their own ecosystems. This “embedded experience” approach allows customers to apply for cards, manage balances, pay bills, and redeem rewards without leaving the partner’s app or website. For instance, a shopper at Crate & Barrel can make purchases and earn rewards in one tap, driving higher spend and retention. The platform’s focus on personalization through AI ensures rewards are tailored to individual preferences, further enhancing lifetime value.

Imprint’s vision, as articulated by CEO Daragh Murphy, is to evolve co-branded products from mere bank offerings into comprehensive brand loyalty platforms. “Brands today face pressure to earn customer loyalty through authentic and genuinely rewarding experiences,” Murphy stated. “This milestone underscores how our team is delivering on our mission to build the best way to pay at the brands customers love.” This strategy has resonated, with Imprint partnering with global brands across retail (Crate & Barrel, H-E-B), travel (Booking.com, Turkish Airlines), and e-commerce (Rakuten, Fetch). These collaborations have yielded impressive results: migrating brands see 2x higher wallet share among cardholders, 8x increases in lifetime value compared to non cardholders, and 20% uplifts in spend versus prior programs.

The $150 million Series D was led by Khosla Ventures, with participation from returning and new investors including Thrive Capital, Ribbit Capital, Kleiner Perkins, Hedosophia, Spice Capital, and Timeless. This round follows closely on the heels of Imprint’s Series C in October 2024, signaling accelerated investor interest. The post money valuation of $1.2 billion reflects a doubling from the $600 million set in the previous round, highlighting the company’s rapid scaling.

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Keith Rabois of Khosla Ventures praised Imprint’s edge: “Imprint’s technology advantage enables them to execute with a level of speed and customization that legacy issuers simply cannot match. They have quickly become the partner of choice for major enterprises, and that momentum is why we are thrilled to double down.” This endorsement aligns with broader venture trends favoring AI enabled fintechs that prioritize efficiency and disruption.

The funds are allocated across several strategic pillars:

• Platform Enhancement: Strengthening ImprintCore to support seamless brand native experiences and personalized rewards.
• Product Expansion: Moving beyond credit into debit cards (for reward seeking customers avoiding credit), secured cards, and flexible financing like buy now pay later (BNPL) options. This diversification aims to capture a wider range of consumer financial needs and compete directly with incumbents.
• AI and Automation: Investing in artificial intelligence to automate operations, personalize experiences (e.g., tailoring rewards), and scale without heavy hiring. Imprint’s lean structure, 160 employees supporting nearly 300% year over year business growth with less than 20% headcount increase, exemplifies this approach. Murphy noted the company can “buy or build an AI solution for many things,” rebuilding fintech in an AI era to avoid the bloat seen in traditional players.
• Loyalty and Advertising: Bolstering the Imprint Rewards Network to connect brands with high value users, powering loyalty programs that drive measurable lifts in engagement, spend, and retention.

Additionally, Imprint’s financial health is bolstered by its AAA-rated $300 million securitization from Fitch Ratings, providing low cost capital for lending activities.

Imprint’s funding journey illustrates steady progression from early stage incubation to unicorn status. Below is a summary of its equity funding rounds:

Total equity funding to date exceeds $338 million. This trajectory shows a compounding effect, with valuations doubling between Series C and D amid 200% cardholder growth and 300% revenue expansion (reaching approximately $70 million annually as of early 2025). Early incubation at Thrive Capital provided foundational support, while repeat investments from firms like Khosla and Kleiner indicate strong belief in Imprint’s model.

The co-branded credit card market, valued at over $100 billion in annual spend, has long been dominated by banks like Citi, Synchrony, and Capital One, which handle issuance but often prioritize their own ecosystems over brand needs. Imprint disrupts this by offering brands greater control, faster innovation, and embedded integrations, key in an era where consumers demand frictionless, rewarding experiences. The rise of embedded finance, accelerated by post pandemic digital shifts, plays to Imprint’s strengths, as retailers seek to boost loyalty amid economic pressures.

However, challenges persist. Regulatory scrutiny on fintech lending, competition from players like Affirm and Klarna in BNPL, and economic factors like interest rates could impact growth. Imprint’s AI focus mitigates some risks by enabling efficient scaling, but maintaining partnerships and expanding internationally (e.g., with Turkish Airlines) will be critical. Social media reactions to the round have been positive, with analysts noting Imprint’s potential to displace incumbents in mid market and luxury retail.

Looking ahead, Imprint’s expansion into debit and financing positions it as a full spectrum loyalty platform, potentially challenging broader fintech giants. Murphy envisions Imprint as “the platform that powers premium access for the customers of leading brands.” With strong capitalization, the company is well equipped to navigate market dynamics, focusing on sustainable growth rather than aggressive spending. This round not only validates Imprint’s Irish-founded roots as a global success story but also signals fintech’s shift toward AI driven, brand centric models. As consumer preferences evolve toward personalized rewards, Imprint’s trajectory suggests continued momentum, though success will hinge on execution in product diversification and partner adoption.

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