Chime to buy Stride Bank for $590 million, bringing charter in-house

Chime Financial agreed to buy its more-than-seven-year partner Stride Bank for $590 million in cash, a deal that would give the fintech a national bank charter, an established banking, risk and compliance operation, and bank holding company status, according to Chime’s September 8 announcement.

Stride, based in Enid, Oklahoma, would become Chime Bank, a wholly owned subsidiary, at closing. Stride Chairman and CEO Brud Baker said he expects to continue leading the bank. Chime described the acquisition as a faster, more proven route to owning its banking infrastructure than applying for a new charter.

Chime plans to integrate its proprietary technology platform, ChimeCore, with Stride’s banking infrastructure to unify data and decision-making and reduce handoffs. Its announcement also identifies increased regulatory scrutiny and additional requirements as risks of the transaction, including those associated with becoming a bank holding company.

The company expects more than $100 million in net synergies from sponsor-bank fee savings, expanded lending products and lower funding costs. It expects the acquisition to increase earnings per share immediately upon closing and plans to fund the purchase from cash on its balance sheet.

After closing, Chime expects to consolidate its banking activities at Stride, with the bank focused primarily on Chime’s consumer business. It plans to keep the bank’s assets below $10 billion for the foreseeable future.

Completion is expected in the first half of 2027, subject to approval by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Federal Reserve Board, along with other customary closing conditions.