Upgrade Offers OneCard for Single Platform Budgeting, Rewards

Challenger bank Upgrade is launching OneCard, a new product that provides users with a single card for daily expenses and making payments over time.

“When paying for everyday expenses, consumers historically had to choose between a debit card to ensure they stay within budget, and a credit card to earn rewards,” Upgrade co-founder and CEO Renaud Laplanche said in a press release Wednesday (July 27). 

“With Upgrade OneCard, consumers don’t have to make that choice anymore: they can use Pay Now for everyday expenses to avoid interest and fee charges while earning credit card rewards without running the risk of falling into credit card debt,” Laplanche said.

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OneCard’s Pay Now feature helps customers stay within budget and sidestep interest charges, and the card’s Pay Later option enables installments over time. Both options give customers cash-back rewards of 3% on many everyday purchases including restaurants, gas stations and drug stores, and 2% on all other purchases when combined with an Upgrade Rewards Checking Account.

Both options also offer the same fraud protection that credit cards have, per the release. 

“Consumers are looking for more flexibility and control in how and when they spend their money,” Vanessa Colella, senior vice president and global head of innovation and digital partnerships, Visa, said in the release.

Colella added that FinTechs like Upgrade are “rethinking the traditional credit card model” as the needs and expectations of customers continue to change.

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Headquartered in San Francisco and founded in 2016, Upgrade has an operations center in Phoenix, Arizona, and a technology center in Montreal, Canada.