Imprint raises $130 million at a $1.9 billion valuation
Imprint raised $130 million at about $1.9 billion with Khosla Ventures leading. Murphy's $1.88 billion mark is about 4.7 times the revenue he expects.
Imprint, the New York payments and brand-loyalty company, said on November 11, 2026, that it had raised $130 million at approximately $1.9 billion, led by existing investor Khosla Ventures. Founder and chief executive Daragh Murphy told Upstarts Media the same day that the mark was $1.88 billion, about 4.7 times the roughly $400 million of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) revenue he expects by year-end. That is a receivables multiple, and it fits a firm that has also been expanding the warehouse line behind its cards.
The equity is the smaller funding number. Imprint said it had recently added $1.5 billion of warehouse capacity, about 11.5 times the $130 million raised, and priced a second AAA-rated asset-backed securitization with demand nearly five times the offering. Against the $1.2 billion valuation on its $150 million Series D of December 17, 2025, also led by Khosla Ventures, $1.88 billion is a 56.7% increase. The warehouses fund card balances, and the equity is aimed at product and distribution.
Where the round is aimed
Imprint said the money will fund new payment options and artificial intelligence (AI) tools that help a brand recognize a customer wherever that customer pays. It now serves more than 2 million members and brands representing more than $500 billion of annual US consumer spending, which counts those brands' sales, a wider pool than spending on the cards. Cardholder spending more than doubled between 2025 and 2026, and the share on Imprint cards at partner checkouts tripled, the company said in its November 11 announcement.
This year's launches are Albertsons Companies, Kroger, Shell, and Fanatics, with the Fanatics card debuting the week of the raise. Murphy told Upstarts that head count grew 30% against the 150% revenue step he expects. Upstarts recalled a cardholder base near 15,000 and a $240 million valuation from three years earlier. FinTech Global put the valuation at roughly $1.9 billion with Khosla Ventures leading, matching the release.
Partners on the record
Glenn Schiffman, chief financial officer and a director of Fanatics, said in the announcement that Imprint's technology made it possible to design a program around fans and the business. Rachel Ehrlich, general manager at Fetch, said, "With Imprint, we're seeing stronger engagement from cardholders, which translates into greater loyalty and lifetime value." Imprint cited Packaged Facts for more than $1.1 trillion of payment value across the 10 largest US co-branded programs.
The 2026 logos are grocery, fuel, and sports, on a stack Imprint says it owns from origination through rewards. The LAVA sale to Bilt priced a different sports-loyalty asset at $300 million, so Fanatics is entering a rewards market that already has a cash price. The release states the $130 million round size and leaves any mix of primary capital and secondary shares unstated.
The investor case
"The latest round supports our growth as we build more ways for brands to meet customers where they are, regardless of how they want to shop or pay," Murphy said. Patrick O'Shaughnessy, chief executive and partner at Positive Sum, the new investor, said, "AI will make every option easier to compare, which makes earning a customer's preference more valuable than ever." Hedosophia, Ribbit Capital, Spice, and Thrive Capital joined as existing backers.
Agents and a deposit-backed card
McKinsey research from October 2025 puts US retail revenue that agents could orchestrate by 2030 between $900 billion and $1 trillion of goods, and $3 trillion to $5 trillion globally. Imprint cited the top of the US range and released a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server so an agent can reach rewards, virtual cards, and transaction history, with the member authorizing any purchase. Firmly raised $15 million to connect stores to AI agents, and Skyfire has widened Forter fraud checks on agent checkout, the control that approval step has to clear.
Imprint Access, launched with the round, is a refundable-deposit card that pays the same ongoing rewards as a brand's unsecured card and, with responsible use, offers a path toward an upgrade. The Federal Reserve's October 2025 Consumer and Community Context counts 7 million credit-invisible adults and 25 million with a thin file, 32 million people together, the group Imprint cited for the product.
What would confirm the mark
Because cardholder spending has already more than doubled, the Fanatics waitlist and the first season of deposit-backed accounts will say more than another logo. If assistants route everyday spend through a credential they can see, the MCP server is the distribution bet in this round and the warehouse line is what lets Imprint hold the balances. Readers following co-brand issuance can track that test on the fintech desk.
Reporting by Rick Steves. Filed 14 November 2026, 22:23 GMT.
Senior Reporter, Regulation and Fintech
Rick Steves has seen business and economics through many lenses. He joined the financial services industry in 2009, and has been a financial journalist since 2011.
