Toronto-based fintech Float has secured $50 million in debt financing from Silicon Valley Bank to help expand its corporate credit program. The deal comes nearly a year after First Citizens Bank took control of the U.S.-based startup lender in the wake of its collapse, and roughly six months since National Bank of Canada bought SVB’s Canadian debt portfolio.

The fintech: Launched in 2019, Float first released a software system and corporate card that let companies approve employee expenses in real time. It launched its Charge Card credit product in 2022, which underwrites corporate clients for interest-free capital that they repay at the end of 30 days. 

The deal: Float isn’t a bank. Its business is fuelled by venture capital—it raised a US$30-million Series A and a $5-million seed round in 2021—and debt it holds with Canadian banks. CEO Rob Khazzam said the line of credit from SVB will specifically go towards underwriting the Charge Card program. “Because that money turns over each month, that is a pretty meaningful effect to our customers,” he said. SVB is the first bank that has partnered with Float for the credit product, said Khazzam. 

“Aggressive expansion”: Float is positioning itself as a challenger to traditional banks, something Khazzam said clients have been receptive to in a market that’s become harder for some businesses to raise or borrow money. The company claims its credit business’s customer base has grown sevenfold since its launch. “We are seeing demand from our customers for access to credit,” he said. “This credit cycle, interest rates going up, is obviously putting pressure on them.” 

Back in business in Canada: Khazzam said Float’s team vetted other potential financial partners before landing on SVB. “They were competitive and really understood what we were trying to achieve,” he said. 

Brian Foley, marketing manager for SVB’s warehouse and fintech group, said in a press release that the deal shows the bank’s commitment to helping scale fintech companies. 

SVB was acquired by First Citizens last March, after a run on the lender triggered its bankruptcy. National Bank later bought SVB’s relatively small Canadian portfolio of outstanding loans. The Montreal-based bank absorbed the assets into its technology and innovation banking group and doesn’t operate a standalone SVB division like First Citizens does.