CardFlight
CardFlight is a New York-based payment technology company that operates SwipeSimple, a SaaS payment acceptance platform serving over 125,000 small US businesses across 350+ industries via 200+ channel partners and direct sales.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersNew York, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What CardFlight does
CardFlight is a New York-based payment technology company founded in 2013 that builds SwipeSimple, a SaaS payment acceptance platform serving small businesses in the United States. The platform spans mobile (iOS/Android), countertop terminals, and a web-based gateway (Virtual Terminal, Invoices, Payment Links), and is built on a unified dashboard. The company's original CardFlight SDK (2013) remains an integration pathway for third-party developers, while SwipeSimple has evolved into the primary commercial product, now serving more than 125,000 small business merchants across all 50 states and approximately 350 industries. Notable technical features include first-to-market EMV Quick Chip support (2018), NFC-based Tap to Pay on iPhone (2025), contactless Apple Pay/Google Pay acceptance, Level II/III EMV certification for corporate and government cards, and a March 2026-launched App Marketplace offering third-party integrations such as QuickBooks Online Sync.
CardFlight operates a hybrid go-to-market model. The primary channel is a partner network of over 200 merchant acquirers, ISOs, and resellers — including 10 of the top 25 US merchant acquirers — that distribute SwipeSimple under co-branded or white-label arrangements. Direct sales to small businesses occur through SwipeSimple Connect, a self-serve online registration flow. The company monetizes through transaction processing fees (as a payment gateway and technical service provider), recurring monthly subscriptions, and hardware sales of card readers and terminals. CardFlight is privately held, founder-led (CEO Derek Webster), and received a significant minority growth investment from WestView Capital Partners in October 2024 to fund software development and partner network expansion. Operations are remote-first across multiple US states, with 51–100 employees.
CardFlight firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- CardFlight
- Legal name
- CardFlight, Inc.
- Website
- https://cardflight.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- CardFlight is a New York-based payment technology company that operates SwipeSimple, a SaaS payment acceptance platform serving over 125,000 small US businesses across 350+ industries via 200+ channel partners and direct sales.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
CardFlight industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Payment Processing Software
- NAICS
- Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Payment PIN Pads, Card Readers & NFC Contactless Devices (HDACAKAG)
- akta.pro secondary industry
- Mobile Wallets (NFC Tap-to-Pay / HCE) (FSAMAEAB)
Keywords
Where CardFlight is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- New York
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
CardFlight business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Transaction Processing Fees: CardFlight acts as a payment gateway and technical service provider, facilitating payment processing between merchants and acquiring service providers. Fees are collected through the subscription and transaction processing.
- Subscription Fees: Monthly subscription model for access to SwipeSimple services. Subscriptions auto-renew monthly unless cancelled. Some services require paid subscriptions and supplemental terms.
- Hardware Sales: Sale of SwipeSimple card readers and payment hardware products. Hardware may be purchased directly from CardFlight or through authorized resellers.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | SwipeSimple subscription plans with monthly billing |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels5 records
CardFlight product offering
Product offeringCore offering
CardFlight provides a SaaS payment acceptance platform called SwipeSimple that enables small businesses to accept credit and debit card payments across mobile devices (iOS/Android), countertop terminals, and web-based interfaces. The platform includes EMV and contactless card readers, virtual terminal, payment gateway, invoicing, payment links, business reporting dashboard, and an app marketplace, and is also offered through a Software Development Kit (SDK) for third-party developers.
Product overview
CardFlight is a payment technology company that has evolved from its 2013 founding into a SaaS payment platform for small businesses. The core product is SwipeSimple, a unified payment acceptance platform offered across multiple channels: mobile (iOS/Android), countertop retail terminals, and web-based payment gateway (Virtual Terminal, Invoices, Payment Links). SwipeSimple serves over 125,000 small business merchants across the US through a network of 200+ partner resellers and direct sales via SwipeSimple Connect. The platform also includes an App Marketplace (launched 2026) with integrated business tools like QuickBooks Online Sync, and the CardFlight SDK enables third-party developers to build payment acceptance into their own mobile applications.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- SwipeSimple: The company's signature SaaS payment solution for small businesses, enabling mobile, in-store, and counter-top payment acceptance. Includes card readers, virtual terminal, invoices, payment links, and business management tools.
Products and services
- SwipeSimple SwipeSimple is CardFlight's flagship SaaS payment acceptance platform for small businesses, enabling over 125,000 merchants to accept payments on the go, in their store, or at their computer through a unified dashboard. The platform supports mobile, countertop, and web-based payment acceptance.
- SwipeSimple Terminal Smart terminal solution for countertop retail payment acceptance, expanding the range of user-friendly payment solutions for merchants who want to accept payments in-person at their store locations.
- SwipeSimple Register Enhanced point-of-sale checkout system released in 2021 offering features to make checkout fast and easy for modern merchants, enabling omni-channel payment acceptance for small businesses.
- SwipeSimple App Marketplace Platform offering integrated applications for merchants including QuickBooks Online Sync (accounting), Appointments (scheduling), and Text Loyalty & Reviews (customer engagement) to enhance business operations.
- CardFlight SDK Software Development Kit introduced in 2013 as CardFlight's first commercial product, allowing application developers to integrate secure, in-person payment acceptance into their mobile applications.
Quantifiable outcome
- 125,000+ small businesses use SwipeSimple for payment acceptance
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use CardFlight
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
CardFlight technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature8 records
CardFlight partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- QuickBooks OnlinecoreQuickBooks Online Sync app launched in SwipeSimple App Marketplace, providing integrated accounting synchronization for merchants.
- WorldpaycoreWorldpay merchants can now use Tap to Pay on iPhone through SwipeSimple, enabling contactless payments without additional hardware via NFC technology on iPhones.
- 200+ Channel Partners (Merchant Acquirers, ISOs)coreOver 200 partners including merchant acquirers and independent sales organizations provide SwipeSimple payment acceptance solutions. Ten of the top 25 merchant acquirers recommend SwipeSimple as their small business payment solution.
- Card Networks (Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover)coreSwipeSimple processes transactions for cards issued by major networks. Merchants must comply with network bylaws, rules, and regulations.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
CardFlight competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Block (Square): Square is the dominant mobile POS and payment acceptance platform for small businesses in the US, offering card readers, Tap to Pay, software, and a merchant ecosystem that directly overlaps with SwipeSimple's product and SMB target market.
- Clover (Fiserv): Clover is a SMB-focused POS and payments platform distributed heavily through merchant acquirers — exactly CardFlight's GTM motion — competing for the same small business merchants via hardware and software bundles.
- SumUp: SumUp provides mobile card readers and Tap to Pay solutions targeting micro and small merchants globally, with overlapping product (mPOS hardware, contactless acceptance) and very similar SMB customer profile.
- PayPal Zettle: PayPal Zettle (formerly iZettle) is a direct mPOS competitor offering card readers, Tap to Pay on iPhone, and SMB commerce software targeting the same micro-merchant segment as CardFlight's SwipeSimple.
- Toast: Toast is a vertical SaaS + payments platform for restaurants and food-and-beverage SMBs with integrated POS, hardware, and processing — overlapping with SwipeSimple in F&B payment acceptance (a key vertical CardFlight cited in its 2020 growth).
- Stripe Terminal: Stripe Terminal offers in-person card readers and Tap to Pay for SMBs and platforms, competing head-on with SwipeSimple in mobile and countertop card acceptance, particularly for software-led merchants.
- Helcim: Helcim is a payment processor and POS provider focused on small and mid-sized businesses with transparent interchange-plus pricing, directly competing with CardFlight for SMB merchant processing volume.
- Stax Payments: Stax (formerly Fattmerchant) is a subscription-based payments platform for SMBs offering POS integrations, virtual terminal, and invoicing — closely mirroring SwipeSimple's software-plus-processing value proposition.
Emerging players
- Lightspeed Commerce: Lightspeed provides cloud POS and payments for retail and restaurant SMBs with integrated hardware, partially overlapping with SwipeSimple's omni-channel and countertop register offerings.
Broad incumbents
- Worldpay: Worldpay is a top-tier global merchant acquirer and is both a CardFlight channel partner and a broader payments competitor, offering its own SMB acquiring solutions in addition to distributing SwipeSimple with Tap to Pay on iPhone.
Market position
Strengths4 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
CardFlight social profiles
Digital presenceCardFlight financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
CardFlight leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
CardFlight funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds6 records
Investors11 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
CardFlight M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about CardFlight
What does CardFlight do?
CardFlight provides a SaaS payment acceptance platform called SwipeSimple that enables small businesses to accept credit and debit card payments across mobile devices (iOS/Android), countertop terminals, and web-based interfaces. The platform includes EMV and contactless card readers, virtual terminal, payment gateway, invoicing, payment links, business reporting dashboard, and an app marketplace, and is also offered through a Software Development Kit (SDK) for third-party developers.
Is CardFlight a public or private company?
CardFlight is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was CardFlight founded?
CardFlight was founded in 2013. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is CardFlight based?
CardFlight is headquartered in New York, United States, in the North America region.
How does CardFlight make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Transaction Processing Fees are the primary driver. The others are subscription Fees and hardware Sales.
Who are CardFlight's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Block (Square), Clover (Fiserv), SumUp, PayPal Zettle, Toast, Stripe Terminal, Helcim and Stax Payments. Lightspeed Commerce is listed as an emerging player. Worldpay is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does CardFlight have an API?
Yes. CardFlight offers a Software Development Kit (SDK) that allows application developers to integrate secure, in-person payment acceptance into their mobile applications. The SDK was introduced in 2013 as CardFlight's first commercial product, enabling mobile businesses to accept card payments through their own applications.
What industry is CardFlight in?
CardFlight's product category is Payment Processing Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is HDACAKAG, Payment PIN Pads, Card Readers & NFC Contactless Devices, with a secondary code of FSAMAEAB, Mobile Wallets (NFC Tap-to-Pay / HCE). Its NAICS code is 522320 and its SIC code is 7372.