Merrick Bank

What Merrick Bank does

Merrick Bank is an FDIC-insured, privately held U.S. bank and a wholly owned subsidiary of CardWorks, Inc., headquartered in Draper, Utah. Founded in 1997, the bank operates as a top 20 U.S. credit card issuer with approximately $9 billion in total assets serving roughly 5 million cardmembers nationwide. Its product portfolio centers on credit card issuing — including the Ollo sub-brand relaunched in October 2025 with upgraded technology and the Ally credit card portfolio acquired in April 2025 — supplemented by Certificate of Deposit products featured in consumer rate guides. The bank's go-to-market is direct-to-consumer via its website and mobile channels, with distribution now expanding across partner channels as part of a 2026 brand refresh built around the tagline 'The bank that builds.'

The bank generates revenue primarily through net interest income from card receivables and CD products, plus interchange and fee income on its card portfolio. Underwriting and risk management are supported by an internal Analytics and Decision Science function. Operational resilience was reinforced in January 2026 through deployment of Morphisec's Anti-Ransomware Assurance Suite, which closed prior PCI-DSS audit findings. The bank is currently led by President and CEO Rick Urrutia, with Arron Echols appointed CFO in February 2026 succeeding his prior SVP Controller role, and Louis Mrachek serving as SVP Analytics and Decision Science.

Name

Merrick Bank

Legal name

Merrick Bank

Website

https://merrickbank.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

Merrick Bank is an FDIC-insured U.S. credit card issuer and a wholly owned subsidiary of CardWorks, Inc., serving approximately 5 million cardmembers nationwide with credit card and CD products.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Consumer Credit Cards

NAICS

Credit Card Issuing (522210)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141)

akta.pro primary industry

Subprime Credit Cards & Secured Cards (FSAKAOAD)

akta.pro secondary industries

Credit Cards & Revolving Credit (FSABAAAC), Secured Credit Cards (FSAKABAD)

Keywords

• Consumer credit cards
• Credit card issuing
• Certificate of deposits
• Credit building products
• FDIC-insured banking

Headquarters

HQ city

Draper

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Merrick Bank is a top 20 U.S. credit card issuer and FDIC-insured institution with nearly $9 billion in assets, serving approximately 5 million cardmembers. The bank issues consumer credit cards through the Ollo sub-brand and acquired Ally credit card portfolio, and also offers Certificate of Deposit (CD) products to consumers seeking to build credit or save.

Product overview

Merrick Bank is a top 20 U.S. credit card issuer and FDIC-insured institution with nearly $9 billion in assets serving approximately five million cardmembers. The company operates a multi-product financial services portfolio centered on credit card issuing, which includes the Ollo credit card sub-brand and acquired Ally credit card portfolio. Additionally, the bank offers Certificate of Deposit (CD) products. As a wholly owned subsidiary of CardWorks, Inc., Merrick Bank recently underwent a brand refresh in February 2026 with a new visual identity and tagline 'The bank that builds.'

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Ollo: Credit card brand relaunched in October 2025 with upgraded technology and enhanced benefits.

Products and services

• Ollo Credit Cards A consumer credit card brand relaunched in October 2025 with upgraded technology and enhanced benefits, offered by Merrick Bank as part of its credit card portfolio. Targeted at consumers seeking to build or rebuild credit.
• Credit Card Issuing Core credit card issuing services serving approximately 5 million cardmembers across the United States, including acquired accounts from Ally. Includes secured and unsecured credit card products for consumers building or rebuilding credit.
• Certificate of Deposit (CD) Products FDIC-insured Certificate of Deposit (CD) products offered to consumers with APYs ranging from 2.75% to 4.25% across various term lengths, featured in Fortune's best CDs guide.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• MorphiseccoreTechnology or Integration · 22 January 2026Merrick Bank deployed Morphisec's Anti-Ransomware Assurance Suite, achieving 100% ransomware prevention, blocking advanced attacks during red-team testing, and improving compliance outcomes including closed PCI-DSS audit findings
• Ally FinancialmajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2025Merrick Bank acquired Ally's credit card portfolio in April 2025, a transaction that doubled the bank's portfolio scale during Q2'25

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bread Financial: A consumer lending and credit card company focused on branded credit and installment products. Comparable to Merrick Bank in offering proprietary and partner-driven card products to non-prime and mainstream consumers.
• Synchrony Financial: One of the largest private-label and co-branded credit card issuers in the U.S. Comparable to Merrick Bank as a major non-bank-affiliated credit card issuer with similar scale and a focus on non-prime and partnership-driven card portfolios.
• OneMain Financial: The largest installment lender to non-prime consumers in the U.S. Highly comparable to Merrick Bank's customer demographic (subprime and credit-building borrowers), with overlapping risk profiles and regulatory exposures.
• Credit One Bank: A leading subprime and credit-building credit card issuer serving consumers looking to establish or rebuild credit. Closely comparable to Merrick Bank's 'bank that builds' positioning and Ollo sub-brand, with similar customer base and product mix.
• Continental Finance Company: A subprime and credit-building credit card issuer behind brands such as Indigo and Milestone. Directly comparable to Merrick Bank in target customer, product positioning, and channel mix within the subprime card segment.
• Comenity Bank: A major issuer of private-label and co-branded credit cards across retail verticals. Comparable to Merrick Bank as a U.S. credit card bank focused on non-prime and partnership-driven card programs.

Broad incumbents

• Capital One: Top-tier U.S. credit card issuer with significant subprime exposure (e.g., the Venture and Quicksilver portfolios). Notably, Capital One was also a major Q2'25 card-portfolio acquirer alongside Merrick Bank, making it comparable both in product and growth strategy.
• Ally Financial: A major U.S. digital bank and former credit card issuer. Notably, Ally divested its credit card portfolio to Merrick Bank in April 2025, making it a directly comparable scale player in U.S. consumer credit and a direct counterparty in Merrick's largest recent transaction.
• Discover Financial Services: Major U.S. credit card issuer with a broad prime-card portfolio. Comparable to Merrick Bank as a top-tier U.S. card issuer, though Discover skews prime rather than subprime, making it a broader incumbent rather than a direct competitor.

Regional players

• First National Bank of America: A community-oriented bank offering competitive CD products that was featured alongside Merrick Bank in Fortune's best-CD guides. Comparable in deposit-product positioning and subprime-friendly credit offerings.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/merrick-bank

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A2 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Merrick Bank