FinTech News
Truist Bank Acquires Long Game Mobile Savings App
After many years and evolutions, the prize-linked savings platform Long Game is entering a new phase after being purchased by one of the largest banks in the United States. Today, Truist Bank announced that it had acquired the gamified savings app. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Long Game has previously raised $17 million in funding. According to Truist, the bank plans to leverage the app’s technology in order to help its customers enjoy long-term financial wellness. In particular, the bank notes that the platform will increase engagement and financial education among Millennial and Gen Z users.
Long Game was founded in 2015 in a bid to help consumers grow their savings by rewarding them with free games that could yield real prizes. While the app originally launched as a standalone platform that would hold customer deposits, it relaunched as Long Game Rewards in 2021 with partners NBKC and Varo. This version of the app allowed customers to simply link their accounts to earn tokens and would automatically deposit any winnings.
With Truist’s acquisition of Long Game, the FinTech’s engineers, designers, and business leaders will be welcomed to the bank’s Innovation team. Additionally, Long Game’s co-founder and CEO Lindsay Holden will lead a team that will develop client-centric tech solutions. That team will be based in San Fransico.
In a statement, Holden said of the acquisition, “Truist’s commitment to help people build financial wellness is exactly what we are about at Long Game. We’ve revolutionized bank engagement and are eager to apply ourselves to creating disruptive technologies that help Truist deliver a human touch in new ways.” Meanwhile, Truist’s CIO for Consumer Technology and Innovation Ken Meyer said of the FinTech, “This acquisition is a critical component of a broader innovation strategy at Truist that will future-proof our core businesses and attract inventive and entrepreneurial talent to help deliver new and groundbreaking solutions. We’re incredibly excited to welcome Lindsay and the Long Game team as we roll out this strategy and create new and distinctive experiences for our clients.”
As a long-time observer of Long Game, this deal makes a lot of sense. While it was clear from the get-go that Long Game was onto something, it was never quite able to find the right avenue for its technology and platform. Yet, the company has proven resilient, coming back after an initial shutdown and other stumbling blocks. Thus, it will be interesting to see what the app’s future looks like in the hands of Truist.
