Petal Raises $13 Million In Series A Funding

Credit card startup Petal announced today that it has raised $13 million in Series A financing, led by Valar Ventures, a New York-based venture capital fund. Petal’s existing investors also participated in the round, including Brooklyn Bridge Ventures, Afore Capital, Rosecliff Ventures, Great Oaks Venture Capital, New Ground Ventures, Abstract Ventures, Ride Ventures, Story Ventures, and The Gramercy Fund.

Petal has developed a new technology, which it calls “cashflow underwriting,” that analyzes, in real-time, an individual’s digital financial record. Unlike other lenders, which make decisions based solely on credit reports or subjective proxies for financial resources like education and occupation data, Petal measures objective components of each individual’s creditworthiness, such as how much the person makes, saves and spends over time, as well as bills paid each month. In September, the company unveiled a simple, no-fee credit card that does not require a credit score, along with a mobile app that makes it easier to own and manage credit cards responsibly.