Bucking the prepaid trend, PerkStreet raised an additional $1 million to fund operation of its Checking Account that earns perks:
“PerkStreet offers a debit rewards card that offers up to 2 percent cash back on purchases and a checking account with no maintenance fees. It also offers access to a fee-free ATM network, customer service 24/7, and offers of up to 5 percent cash back in specific categories.”
Utilizing decoupled debit but also offering checks, the PerkStreet account is unusual. It is operated, however, by individuals with significant knowledge in prepaid and decoupled debit operations:
“Principals named in the new filing include:
– Daniel O’Malley, CEO
– Jason Henrichs, COO
– Paul Maeder, director, from Highland Capital Partners
– Dan Rosen, director, also from Highland Capital Partners
– Rick Savard, directorBefore PerkStreet, O’Malley co-founded Capital One’s Payments division, where he created the decoupled debit card and launched the company’s prepaid business. He has a background in quantitative analysis and a BSE in Operations Research from Princeton University.”
It will be interesting to see if these funds are used to enhance the product and operations or to boost up the sales and marketing engine, given that PerkStreet is not highly visible.
