theCARD

What theCARD does

theCard LLC, operating under the brand Circa Black, is a Cincinnati, Ohio-headquartered private company that issues a single prepaid debit card product aimed at individual consumers in the United States. Founded circa 2014 and led by co-founder, chairman and CEO James M. Gould, the card is positioned for direct deposit of payroll, peer-to-peer money transfers between individuals, and everyday spending, with a mobile application supporting account management. The product is distributed directly to consumers through the company's website (circablack.com) and mobile app, and the program supports "Employer Value Loads" and consumer reloads, suggesting limited indirect employer-based payroll distribution.

The platform is a standard prepaid card program built around an explicitly fee-light pricing architecture: most core services — monthly maintenance, card issue, signature/PIN transactions, POS declines, bill pay, ATM balance inquiries, ATM declines, and 800-number customer service — are free. Select transactional fees generate revenue, including a $3.00 bank account transfer (capped at $2,500/day), a $5.95 monthly inactivity fee after three months of inactivity, a $15.00 overnight card shipment, and a $3.50 lost/stolen card replacement. A core partnership with the Allpoint ATM Network provides fee-free ATM withdrawals up to $1,000 per day, in-network balance inquiries, and declines, with a $1,000/day cap on out-of-network US withdrawals and international ATM access also capped at $1,000/day.

theCard operates exclusively in the US, has not raised institutional venture funding beyond two early rounds totaling approximately $1.7 million in 2013–2014, discloses no headcount, and shows no acquisitions, partnerships beyond Allpoint, AI/ML capabilities, or public-facing API/SDK surface. The company is a small, single-product consumer fintech with minimal disclosed footprint beyond its website and mobile app.

Name

theCARD

Legal name

theCard LLC

Website

https://circablack.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Short description

theCard LLC (Circa Black) is a Cincinnati-based prepaid debit card issuer serving US individual consumers with direct deposit payroll, peer-to-peer payments, and fee-free everyday spending distributed through its website and mobile app.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Prepaid Card Services

NAICS

Credit Card Issuing (52221)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141)

akta.pro primary industry

Open-Loop Prepaid Cards (Network-Branded) (FSAMANAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Payroll Cards & Salary Prepaid (FSAMANAE)

Keywords

• Prepaid debit cards
• Direct deposit payroll
• Mobile banking platform
• Peer-to-peer payments
• Consumer financial services

Headquarters

HQ city

Cincinnati

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Prepaid Card Fees: Revenue generated from various card-related fees including inactivity fees, cash advances, overnight card shipments, and fund transfers to bank accounts. The majority of basic services are free, with fees applied to specific transactions and services.

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels1 record

Core offering

theCARD (operating as Circa Black) is a provider of prepaid debit card and mobile banking services targeted at individual consumers. The card supports direct deposit of payroll, peer-to-peer money transfers, bill payment, and everyday spending, with most basic services offered free of charge while fees are applied to specific transactions such as bank transfers, inactivity, and overnight card shipments.

Product overview

theCARD (operating as Circa Black) offers a single prepaid debit card product designed for direct deposit payroll, accepting peer-to-peer payments, and everyday spending. The card features fee-free transactions including SMS text messaging, signature/PIN transactions, POS declines, monthly maintenance, employer value loads, consumer reloads, bill payment via internet, Allpoint ATM network withdrawals (up to $1,000/day), ATM declines, and balance inquiries. The company is based in Cincinnati, OH.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Circa Black (theCARD) Prepaid Debit Card A prepaid debit card designed for direct deposit payroll, peer-to-peer money transfers, and everyday spending with fee-free transactions including ATM withdrawals on the Allpoint network, bill payment, signature/PIN transactions, and balance inquiries. Targeted at individual consumers seeking a low-fee alternative to traditional prepaid cards.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Allpoint ATM NetworkcoreTechnology or IntegrationAllpoint ATM Network partnership enables cardholders to withdraw cash fee-free at Allpoint ATMs worldwide. The company offers FREE ATM withdrawals within the Allpoint network with a maximum of $1,000 per day, and also provides free ATM Balance Inquiries and free ATM Declines through this network.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves4 records

Expansion highlights2 records

Direct peers

• Walmart MoneyCard: Walmart MoneyCard, issued by Green Dot, is a reloadable prepaid debit card sold through Walmart's retail channels and online. It competes directly with Circa Black in the fee-sensitive underbanked segment, offering similar direct deposit and everyday spending features.
• Serve by American Express: Serve is American Express's reloadable prepaid account and card product, comparable in feature set to Circa Black: free direct deposit, peer-to-peer payments, and everyday spending. Both target unbanked and underbanked consumers seeking a card-led alternative to a checking account.
• PaySign (Brink's): PaySign, now part of Brink's, offers prepaid card programs including consumer and payroll cards with similar direct-deposit and reload features. Its product set and end-market overlap closely mirror theCARD's prepaid payroll positioning.
• PayPal Prepaid Mastercard: PayPal Prepaid is a network-branded reloadable prepaid card tied to the PayPal digital wallet, directly comparable to theCARD's combination of prepaid card and P2P/money-transfer capabilities. Both target consumers who want prepaid convenience with mobile wallet integration.
• Green Dot Corporation: Green Dot is the largest US prepaid card program manager and retailer of general-purpose reloadable prepaid and debit cards. It is the closest direct peer to theCARD's Circa Black product — both sell horizontally distributed, network-branded prepaid cards targeting consumers seeking a low-cost alternative to a traditional bank account, and earn revenue primarily through interchange and transaction fees.
• Bluebird by American Express & Walmart: Bluebird is a fee-light prepaid alternative launched by American Express and Walmart, addressing the same cost-conscious prepaid user as theCARD. Both lean on no-monthly-fee positioning and mobile account management.
• NetSpend (Pathward Financial): NetSpend, a Pathward Financial subsidiary, is a leading provider of prepaid debit cards marketed directly to consumers and through employer/benefits distributions. It competes head-to-head with theCARD on the same prepaid payroll and everyday-spending use cases for underbanked US consumers.

Emerging players

• Venmo (PayPal): Venmo is a peer-to-peer payment and debit card platform; its P2P and card products compete with Circa Black's money-transfer and everyday-spending features. Venmo's scale and brand recognition make it a directional peer for any entrant in prepaid + P2P.
• Cash App (Block): Cash App provides a prepaid debit card and integrated peer-to-peer payments platform, directly overlapping theCARD's P2P and everyday-spending use cases. It is a much larger, mobile-first competitor in the same segment.
• Chime Financial: Chime is a digital-first neobank offering fee-free checking, savings, and a debit card — comparable to theCARD's "fee-free modern money" proposition but with broader banking services and significantly greater scale. It is a partial-overlap competitor targeting the same fee-sensitive consumer.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about theCARD