In this Wharton Fintech exclusive, Wharton MBA candidate Miguel Armaza and recent MBA graduate Guillermo Gonzalez went behind the scenes with SoFi’s Anthony Noto and Galileo’s Clay Wilkes to explore what the Wharton team describes as “one of the most transformational acquisitions in the fintech space to date”—the recent transaction in which SoFi acquired Galileo for the total sum of $1.2 billion.
To get to the heart of the strategy that drove the union, Miguel and Guillermo asked what prompted SoFi to consider Galileo as a crucial strategic alternative and explored the challenges of executing a landmark transaction during a global pandemic.
They also dove down on what the future holds for SoFi and Galileo, including product plans that leverage the companies’ unique strengths and capabilities, and plans for international expansion.
A key message emerging from the conversation is Anthony and Clay’s mutual belief in the mission of advancing financial independence and inclusion, which has guided the decision to keep both companies independent, opening the door for far-reaching, industry-wide collaborations.
Tune into the full conversation by clicking here.
Brand Executives Fear They’re Losing Customers to Rivals With In-App Financial Tools, Galileo Research Finds
Half of consumers have chosen one brand over another because paying or getting a refund was easier
Introducing SoFi Tech Solutions: A Unified Brand Built to Power End-to-End Financial Innovation
We’re evolving from Galileo to SoFi Tech Solutions to reflect the full scope of our platform. We deliver end-to-end infrastructure for fintechs, brands, and financial institutions, now backed by SoFi’s scale and resources. Our mission stays the same: support our clients’ growth while maintaining platform neutrality and strong data protections.
Galileo Enables SoFi to Send and Receive FedNow® Service Payments
SoFi enables 24/7 instant payments with FedNow®, letting members send and receive money in seconds via Galileo’s real-time payment platform.
Your Loyalty Program Might Be Ignoring Your Best Customers
For decades, most loyalty programs were built around credit cards. That alignment made sense at a time when revolving credit was the primary lens through which loyalty and rewards were structured. But consumer payment behavior has changed, and Gen Z is making that shift especially visible.
SoFi and Mastercard Partner to Enable SoFiUSD Settlement Across Mastercard’s Global Payments Network
SoFi’s fully reserved U.S. dollar stablecoin will support settlement across the Mastercard network, including for SoFi Bank, N.A. Galileo, SoFi’s technology platform, will be among the first to offer its clients and their issuing banks the choice to settle transactions using SoFiUSD The Mastercard Multi-Token Network will look to support SoFiUSD, help expand interoperability between digital assets and traditional forms of money
