Credit Card Startup Mission Lane Charges into Fintech’s Bank Charter Race

Like Y2K fashion, matcha and Jacob Elordi, bank charters are suddenly in vogue. 

The latest fintech to apply for one is Mission Lane, a credit card startup founded in 2018.

The company isn’t venturing into deposit accounts but will offer a credit-protection product along with cards for an estimated 70 million Americans who are “systematically underserved by traditional financial institutions and have a demonstrated need for affordable access to credit,” per Bloomberg. 

Regulatory Appeal   

Mission Lane is following the path of several other fintechs looking to obtain a more traditional spot in the industry. Last month, AI lending marketplace Upstart and British digital bank Revolut jumped on the bank charter bandwagon, and neobank Mercury Technologies sought approval at the end of last year. In December, the OCC announced a conditional greenlight for several crypto firms, including Ripple and BitGo. In 2025, the number of bank charter applications exceeded those of any other year over the past decade, according to a report by Klaros Group, which expects another record in 2026. 

Businesses seem to be taking advantage of a friendlier regulatory landscape under the Trump administration. (Klaros found that the time required for approvals has plummeted from a median high of 321 days in 2024 to a median of 166 days so far this year). Fintechs are trading the flexibility that comes with being an agile startup for other advantages:  

• “Leading fintechs are reaching new levels of scale and maturity, allowing them to reap greater strategic and financial benefits from a charter to offset the accompanying investments,” experts at consulting firm Oliver Wyman wrote in a report last year. 
• The transition also alleviates concerns over the long-term risks of relying on a sponsor bank, they added. 

No More Newbs: Gone are the days when the typical applications were from experienced bank management teams looking to launch a new bank. According to Klaros’ report, all 12 bank charter applications were from established businesses seeking approval to add a bank to an existing structure.