Chime In Talks To Go Public At $35 To $45 Billion Valuation
I lead our fintech coverage at Forbes, and I also write about blockchain technology and investing. In October 2020, three of my colleagues and I won the Excellence in
…History[edit]
Chime was founded by Chris Britt (CEO) and Ryan King (CTO) in 2013 in San Francisco, California as an alternative to traditional banking.
The company launched publicly on April 15, 2014 on the Dr. Phil Show.[9]
As of 2020, Chime has raised $1.5 billion in private funding.[10]
In 2018, Chime acquired Pinch, a startup focused on helping millennials and young adults build their credit scores by reporting on-time rent payments to credit bureaus. Pinch's co-founders joined Chime's team as a part of the acquisition.[11]
On October 16, 2019, Chime experienced a service outage leaving users without access to their deposits. The issue was resolved the next day.[12]
In January 2020, Chime announced a partnership with the Dallas Mavericks as their jersey sponsor as a part of a multi-year deal.[13]
In April 2020, in response to the financial strain of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chime announced a pilot program to provide users who e-filed tax returns with the IRS a $1,200 advance on the Economic Stimulus Payment via SpotMe, Chime's fee-free overdraft product. [14]
Chime later announced the successful processing of over $375,000,000 in stimulus payments 1 week ahead of the scheduled government disbursement date.[15]
> In May 2021, the company agreed to stop using the term "bank" in marketing per complaints by the California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation.[16]
Account closures[edit]
In July 2021, ProPublica published an article detailing Chime's record of closing customer accounts without notice or explanation, sometimes refusing to return customer deposits.[17] Chime has attributed the closures to the accidental byproduct of fraud prevention.[17]
Funding[edit]
In August 2021, Chime Financial raised $750 million in a series G funding round, led by investor Sequoia Capital Global Equities.[18]
This values the company at about $25 billion.[18]
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