News Summary

• San Francisco-based startup Upgrade has raised $165 million in a Series G funding round led by Neuberger Berman Funds.
• The company now has 7.5 million customers across its various offerings, which range from checking accounts to loans to buy-now, pay-later service Flex Pay.
• Upgrade managed to thrive during a broader reckoning for neobanks because of product diversification and a focus on loans, which can offer a far greater margin than transaction payments.
• For Upgrade, the business model entails underwriting these loans, and then selling them on to other financial organizations in batches grouped by risk.