Welcome to The Free Toaster!
We’re dishing out a free newsletter for marketing pros at banks and lenders. Inspired by the free toasters banks used to hand out to each new customer, we’re here to help you acquire more customers at scale. We deliver fresh news, data, and insights to help you acquire more customers—minus the breadcrumbs.

The One Takeaway

In this edition, we dive into a podcast that demystifies affiliate marketing—a high-stakes but complex channel banks and lenders use to supercharge customer growth. It’s a bit like direct mail with a twist, requiring deep analytics and a responsive team to succeed. With billions moving through affiliate networks annually, execs need a nimble, metrics-driven strategy to stay ahead. The bottom line is that affiliate marketing can be a goldmine if you play it smart and know how to adapt.

News

(10/14) SoFi signed a $2 billion agreement with Fortress Investment Group to expand its loan platform business, which connects pre-qualified borrowers with lenders and originates loans for third parties. CEO Anthony Noto highlighted SoFi's strategy, saying, “SoFi’s loan platform business is an important part of our strategy to serve the financial needs of more members and diversify toward less capital-intensive and more fee-based sources of revenue.” Fortress sees this as a prime investment opportunity, building on its extensive experience in consumer credit financing. [Business Wire]

(10/14) Barclays will take over from Goldman Sachs as the exclusive U.S. issuer of General Motors’ credit cards next summer. The new GM Rewards Mastercard and GM Business Mastercard will offer perks redeemable across the automaker’s vehicle lineup, including its EV portfolio. As Goldman pulls back from consumer banking, Barclays aims to grow its U.S. credit card market presence through this deal. GM, the top U.S. automaker, plans to use these cards to strengthen customer loyalty with unique rewards and boost engagement as it advances its EV strategy. [Business Wire] [BankingDive]

(10/10) Blue Owl Capital is partnering with Upstart to boost consumer credit access, committing to buy up to $2 billion in loans through the AI-driven Upstart platform over the next 18 months. The partnership launched with an initial $290 million loan purchase in September, making it one of Upstart’s largest agreements. “Blue Owl’s ambitious vision and long-term focus will accelerate our efforts to expand access to affordable credit,” said Sanjay Datta, Upstart’s CFO.[Upstart]

(10/9) LendingClub and Pagaya jointly acquired the intellectual property of Tally Technologies, a now-defunct fintech that developed tools for managing credit card debt. LendingClub aims to integrate Tally’s technology into its member platform to help consumers tackle debt amid high interest rates, while Pagaya plans to enhance its credit management solutions for B2B partners. This acquisition came after Tally closed in August after struggling to secure more funding. [Pymnts]

(10/9) SoFi launched two new credit cards to broaden its appeal: the SoFi Everyday Cash Rewards Card and SoFi Essential Credit Card. The Everyday Cash Rewards Card offers up to 3% cash back on dining and 2% on groceries, while the Essential Card is designed for people looking to build credit, with no surprise fees. SoFi aims to provide flexible, member-focused options that enhance financial independence and loyalty across its nearly 9 million members. In July, the company announced they were only piloting these cards by invitation. [Business Wire]

(10/7) Plaid has introduced a new cash flow underwriting tool that pairs its Layer onboarding platform with Consumer Report, allowing lenders to get a fuller picture of applicants’ financial health by incorporating real-time cash flow data. This setup lets lenders review verified income, expenses, and bank balances right from the start of loan applications, simplifying the process. Partnering with MoneyLion, Plaid’s tool supports loan pre-qualification for 17 million users, giving underserved consumers with limited credit histories a chance to be considered. This approach streamlines lending and opens doors to more inclusive financial opportunities. [Plaid Blog]
note: we wrote about our concerns with Cash Flow Underwriting here

(10/7) In a podcast interview, Supriya Gupta, Credit Karma’s VP of Product, discussed how the company leverages AI-driven personalization to tailor financial advice to individual users. Credit Karma aims to use generative AI and predictive analytics as a proactive "financial assistant," helping members anticipate issues like cash flow shortfalls and make better financial decisions. Focusing on each user as a “segment of one,” Credit Karma aims to build trust and provide hyper-personalized guidance based on comprehensive data. [AI in Financial Services Podcast]

(10/1) With the Fed’s recent rate cut, CFO Michael Linford noted that Affirm might pass along savings to consumers through more 0% interest offers or lower APRs—though these perks will likely take one to two years to materialize. Affirm plans to leverage these rate cuts to boost spending, benefiting consumers and merchants while being cautious in response to ongoing economic uncertainties, particularly around employment. Analysts are optimistic, predicting improved profitability as Affirm’s transaction costs decline. [Payments Dive]

Interviews of Interest

Depending on the week, we’ll publish our own interviews with industry experts or spotlight other interviews we find interesting.

Today, we explore a deep dive from one of our in-house contributors to The Free Toaster. Carlos Caro recently released his Affiliate Marketing Pod, which explores the ins and outs of affiliate marketing for banks and lenders.

Carlos aims to answer the following core questions in the first nine episodes:

For anyone new to affiliate marketing, the big question is: how big is this opportunity, and is it really worth it?

And Carlos gets this question all the time.

$3B to $4B per year - That’s the amount of money consumer lenders are spending across the largest six affiliate marketplaces.

Carlos estimates that six major consumer lending affiliates, including Credit Karma, Experian, and NerdWallet, generate approximately $6 billion in annual revenue. He estimates a majority of that total revenue comes from the affiliate program: “consumer lenders are spending around $3B to $4B billion per year across just these six affiliate marketing channels.”

He suggests this figure is considerably higher when the smaller affiliate players are included: "I wouldn’t be surprised if you end up landing in $5, $6, $7 billion per year in affiliate marketing spend going to these publishers... But I think $5 to $7 billion is a conservative take on what the real answer is."​

Of course, one newsletter can’t capture all the insights packed into these episodes—but we’re here to spotlight some important takeaways.

Seven Levers Framework: Carlos introduces a structured framework for optimizing affiliate marketing channels by managing seven critical performance levers: eligibility, impressions, click-through rate (CTR), application rate, approval rate, funding rate, and Cost Per Acquisition (CPA). He explains that each lever represents a distinct step in the funnel, and collectively, they impact overall program efficiency and growth. By actively monitoring and improving each category, lenders can better control conversion quality, adjust strategies to partner needs, and enhance program outcomes.

Affiliate Economics and Priorities: Affiliates rank and distribute ads in multiple ways. And their approach could vary by placements on their sites. However, the most actionable assumption is that they optimize revenue per impression or click. That keeps lenders focused on product appeal, application flow, and overall conversion rates to maintain a competitive position on affiliate sites.

Performance-Based Model: Affiliate marketing for lenders is structured on performance, where payments are tied directly to approved conversions rather than impressions or clicks alone. While this is not universally true, it applies in the majority of cases.

Advanced Targeting Models: He discusses targeting models like Credit Karma’s Lightbox and Experian’s Activate, which help lenders segment high-approval customers early in the funnel, enhancing conversion rates and ad efficiency.

Effective Targeting Strategies: Digital affiliates have created ecosystems similar to credit bureau targeting in direct mail. Diving into best practices for setting up targeting models in digital affiliates may reveal significant efficiencies for lenders.

Operational Maturity: Winning in affiliate marketing requires more than just partnerships; it necessitates a robust marketing funnel, precise targeting, and cross-functional team alignment to respond dynamically to the market.

Challenges in Predicting Affiliate Outcomes: Carlos cautions that affiliate channels offer less predictability than direct marketing channels. The results can be more volatile since affiliates control many variables, such as impressions and targeting.

Fraud Mitigation and Quality Control: Many affiliate platforms offer a pre-login step for users, which verifies identities and screens out fraudulent applications. This security layer helps ensure that applicants are genuine, reducing application fraud relative to other direct marketing channels.

All nine episodes are your ultimate playbook for affiliate marketing success—covering everything from basics to advanced growth strategies for lenders. Tune in to learn more about the affiliate game, boost customer acquisition, and fuel sustainable growth for your lending business!

Quick note from our sponsors

NMG and Fiat Growth are excited to sponsor this newsletter, delivering fintech marketers actionable insights and strategies to drive efficient, cost-effective growth. We’re committed to supporting companies as they navigate data-backed decision-making, strategic partnerships, and marketplace success.

Premium Data

🚧 currently under construction 🚧

We're actively developing this feature, and the first 50 subscribers to The Free Toaster will receive lifetime free access to the dataset. 

We intend to track the ads the biggest banks and lenders display across customer acquisition channels like Meta, Credit Karma, Google, Experian, and NerdWallet.

Subscribe now to stay updated on the launch and snag this exclusive access!