Dive Brief:

• Marqeta, an Oakland, California-based digital-first card issuer, said it’s expanding into Brazil in conjunction with adding a new partnership there with the banking-as-a-service company Fitbank. Marqeta is also gaining network certification in the country via card network Visa, according to a Tuesday press release.
• The expansion is part of a broader push by the corporate card issuer to grow in South America and Central America, a spokesperson for the company said this week. 
• “Marqeta will serve as Fitbank’s tech platform to support local card issuance and card payment processing in Brazil,” the joint release said. Fitbank will also act as Marqeta’s local bank sponsor and banking as a service provider, the companies said.

Dive Insight:

Marqeta, which provides credit, debit and prepaid card services, is already providing services in some 40 countries and is expanding as its continues to seek profitability. The company reported increasing losses of $184.8 million, $163.9 million, and $47.7 million for the past three years, respectively, according to Marqeta’s annual filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission this year.

The new pact with Sao Paulo-based Fitbank will buttress Marqeta’s bid for new revenue. Fitbank, which is already tied to Visa, has thousands of customers on its banking and credit infrastructure and is connected to Brazil’s real-time payments system Pix. 

In addition to expanding into new territories, Marqeta has also added new services in a bid to broaden its appeal to clients and potential customers. Last October, the company launched a portfolio of seven banking products under the moniker Marqeta for Banking.

The expansion efforts could help the company become less dependent on its largest customer, which is Block, the parent company to Square. Block built its business catering to small- and mid-sized businesses. That customer accounted for about 70% of Marqeta’s business in each of the past three years.

The company, which had revenue of $748.2 million last year, is angling to add income as it tightens costs for increased efficiency. In May, Marqeta cut its workforce by 15% as part of a broader cost-reduction plan for this year.

Marqeta’s strategy is being spearheaded by a new CEO this year, with Simon Khalaf having taken over in that role from founder Jason Gardner in January. Khalaf has set his sights on selling more embedded payments services to the company’s clients.