MoneyLion combines banking, lending, investing, and financial advice into a single app. Dee Choubey, a former investment banker, founded it in 2013. The pitch is a one-stop financial platform for middle-income Americans — the demographic that’s too wealthy for government assistance but too cash-strapped for traditional wealth management.
Instacash is MoneyLion’s interest-free cash advance feature, offering up to $500 before payday. Credit Builder Plus is a credit-building loan that reports to all three bureaus — users pay a $19.99/month membership, receive a loan deposited into a restricted account, and make monthly payments that build their credit history. The approach has helped members boost scores by an average of 60+ points.
The investing side offers managed portfolios and self-directed trading with no minimums. MoneyLion’s robo-advisor builds diversified ETF portfolios, while the brokerage arm lets users buy fractional shares of individual stocks and crypto. Rewards from the banking debit card can be automatically invested.
MoneyLion went public via SPAC in 2021. Like Dave, the stock suffered badly in the 2022 fintech selloff. The company responded by acquiring Even Financial (later rebranded as Engine by MoneyLion), a financial product marketplace that connects consumers with credit cards, loans, and savings products from various providers. This embedded finance platform now generates significant revenue by powering financial recommendations on third-party apps and websites.
The company serves over 15 million customers and has facilitated billions in financial transactions. Revenue exceeded $400 million in 2023, with the Engine marketplace becoming an increasingly important revenue driver alongside direct consumer products.
