A Dallas-based financial technology startup Yendo, Inc. has secured $50 million in funding from Mark Cuban and other investors.
Yendo offers credit cards backed by vehicle equity, designed for customers who may otherwise struggle to access them due to low credit scores. The product, which functions like a traditional credit card, is secured by the value of a person’s vehicle. Customers can obtain up to $10,000 in revolving credit with a fixed interest rate of 29.88%.
“Yendo is the first credit card backed by vehicle equity. It works like a regular Mastercard, but taps into your vehicle equity to get higher limits at affordable rates,” the company states on its website.
In addition to Cuban, the Series B funding round also saw participation from Autotech Ventures, FPV Ventures, Pelion Venture Partners, Spice Expeditions, Clocktower Technology Ventures, and other investors. Spice Expeditions founder Nick Huber will join the startup’s board of directors, alongside Lyft co-founder Logan Green.
The funding will reportedly help Yendo build out its AI-powered digital bank, enabling it to trim onboarding and operating costs.
“We’re on a mission to transform consumer finance,” said Jordan Miller, CEO and co-founder of Yendo, in an October 9 announcement. “Our patented AI systems prove it’s possible to unlock trapped asset equity safely and affordably at scale … This funding accelerates our vision of building the bank for the underserved majority, a platform that’s already saved people hundreds of millions while providing significantly higher credit access.”
The latest round follows $150 million in debt financing previously secured by Yendo, as well as $15 million in equity, in 2024. The startup also previously raised $24 million in Series A funding in June 2023 and, before that, $60 million in debt financing in 2022.
During the first half of 2024, the Dallas-Fort Worth area recorded 84 venture capital deals totaling $1.15 billion.