Online lender Avant files with OCC and FDIC to become Avant Bank, N.A.
The Chicago consumer lender wants deposit funding and a single national rulebook, joining a wave of fintechs seeking bank charters since 2025.
By Tech CEO Daily Staff, Newsroom
· 3 min read
The news
Avant, a Chicago-based online lender that offers personal loans and credit cards to middle-income Americans, said on September 18 it had applied to the OCC and the FDIC to form an insured national bank, Avant Bank, N.A.
The company said it has served about 4.8 million customers and extended $17.6 billion in credit. Today it funds loans through a mix of on- and off-balance-sheet sources, including long-term debt and whole loan sales. A charter would let it fund with deposits, which Avant said would lower its costs, and would add banking products and financial management tools to its app.
Proposed leadership comes from inside the company: Chief Business Officer Charles Whittaker would be the bank’s CEO, CFO Kevin Friedrich its CFO and COO Margaret Hermes its president and COO. Co-founder Al Goldstein remains Avant’s CEO. Klaros Group and Covington & Burling advised on the application.
Avant is one of 42 firms to apply for OCC de novo charters since January 2025, Banking Dive reported. The OCC has approved 27, denied two and returned one, with the rest pending; 12 applications sought national trust charters and 15 sought full bank charters, the publication said.
The numbers
- Customers served
- ~4.8 million
- Credit extended
- $17.6 billion
- OCC de novo applications since Jan. 2025
- 42 (27 approved)
Why CEOs should care
The charter rush changes the fintech partner landscape. Lenders that fund with deposits can price credit more cheaply than those relying on debt markets and loan sales, and they depend less on partner banks. For executives choosing lending, card or embedded-finance providers, a chartered partner means one federal supervisor and fewer state-by-state licensing questions, but also bank-level compliance demands passed down to partners.
The OCC’s approval rate so far suggests a friendlier path than in past years. Businesses that rely on bank-fintech partnerships should expect more fintechs to become banks, and some sponsor banks to lose clients as a result.
The bigger picture
The OCC conditionally approved a US bank charter for Revolut on September 2, and lender Upstart has also received conditional approval for a de novo bank, American Banker reported. The pattern points to fintechs trading lighter regulation for cheaper, steadier funding.
What's next
Regulators will review the application; watch for a conditional OCC decision and FDIC action on deposit insurance, which would set the timeline for a launch.
Sources
- PrimaryAvant Files Application to Establish Avant Bank, N.A.— Avant via GlobeNewswire
- ReportFintech Avant applies for OCC charter— Banking Dive
- ReportFintechs asking for, and receiving, bank charters in 2026— American Banker
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