Upward, a leading fintech infrastructure platform provider, has announced the successful completion of its $8 million Series Seed+ funding round, co-led by Dundee Venture Capital and Breakwater Ventures Fund, with participation from Techstars, Altari Ventures, Cascade Seed Fund, and Outside Ventures.
The new capital will strengthen Upward’s mission to make it faster and easier for businesses to launch, operate, and scale digital financial products, while reducing the cost and complexity that have historically slowed innovation in the fintech space.
Strategic Partnership with Mastercard
Alongside the funding, Upward announced a strategic partnership with Mastercard to deliver its embedded financial technology solutions to clients. The collaboration enables businesses to launch Mastercard-branded card programs in just weeks, further enhancing Upward’s mission to streamline fintech innovation.
“At Upward, we’re transforming the way financial products are built,” said Aaron Gregory, Co-founder & CEO of Upward. “For too long, businesses that wanted to offer a financial product have had to choose between innovation, flexibility, and speed. This investment and our Mastercard partnership will help to tear down those barriers — empowering our customers to launch and operate smarter, customer-centric financial products faster than ever.”
Building the Future of Financial Infrastructure
Upward’s platform offers turnkey embedded fintech infrastructure that allows businesses to easily launch credit cards, banking, and payment products without navigating the usual complexities of regulatory compliance and vendor integration.
The unified platform integrates banking, payments, cards, and compliance capabilities, enabling customers — including creator economy and gig platforms — to launch tailored financial products that meet the specific needs of their end users.
“Speed and compliance don’t have to be at odds,” added Danielle Hill, Co-Founder & COO of Upward. “We’ve built the infrastructure to make financial innovation not only faster but also more flexible for our customers. This next phase is about execution—helping customers transform their innovative visions into revenue-generating products in record time.”
The funding includes a mix of new capital and the conversion of convertible equity. Upward plans to use the proceeds to expand its infrastructure, grow its engineering and partnerships teams, and extend its platform to more companies across the fintech, creator, and gig economy sectors.
Empowering Financial Inclusion with Mastercard
The partnership with Mastercard deepens Upward’s ability to deliver innovative and inclusive financial experiences. Through this collaboration, Upward customers gain access to Mastercard’s Easy Savings® and Business Builder Program, helping small businesses and entrepreneurs grow through value-added financial tools and programs.
“We’re proud to partner with Upward to help close the financial inclusion gap and uplift the small business community,” said Ginger Siegel, North America Small Business Lead at Mastercard. “By combining Mastercard’s global payments expertise and technology with Upward’s innovative fintech infrastructure, we’re equipping creators and entrepreneurs with the tools, resources, and financial access they need to grow and thrive—through solutions like Easy Savings and our Business Builder program.”
Accelerating the Future of Embedded Finance
With this funding and partnership, Upward is poised to redefine how financial products are built and launched — bridging the gap between innovation and compliance while enabling companies to bring next-generation fintech solutions to market with unprecedented speed.