# Pesto

> Pesto is a San Francisco fintech building an affordable alternative to pawn and payday loans. Its flagship product, the Pesto Mastercard, lets people pledge valuables - gold, jewelry, watches and other assets - as collateral to receive a secured credit card, regardless of credit score. Cardholders unlock liquidity and build credit history without selling what they own, at interest rates the company says are a fraction of equivalent pawn loans.

- **Founded:** 2020
- **Headquarters:** San Francisco, United States
- **Founders:** James Savoldelli (Founder & CEO)
- **Team size:** ~9 employees
- **Products:** Pesto Mastercard
- **Notable:** Launched what it describes as the first asset-backed credit card, the Pesto Mastercard, in 2023., Raised $11M in a Series A round backed by Y Combinator and Activant Capital, among others., Built a regulated alternative claiming interest rates up to 90% lower than equivalent pawn loans.

## Products & services

- **Pesto Mastercard** — An asset-backed secured credit card. Customers send Pesto eligible assets (such as gold, jewelry and watches) as collateral and receive a credit card with a limit based on the assets' value - no minimum credit score required. Issued by Continental Bank on the Mastercard network. Cardholders build credit over time and can work toward qualifying for unsecured products, at interest rates the company says are often up to 90% lower than equivalent pawn loans.

## Achievements

- Launched what it describes as the first asset-backed credit card, the Pesto Mastercard, in 2023.
- Raised $11M in a Series A round backed by Y Combinator and Activant Capital, among others.
- Built a regulated alternative claiming interest rates up to 90% lower than equivalent pawn loans.

## Latest updates

- **2023-05** — Pesto announced its $11M Series A round and the launch of the Pesto Mastercard, an asset-backed secured credit card issued by Continental Bank.

## Links

- Website: https://getpesto.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/pesto
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/getpesto
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/getpesto/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pestomastercard

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/pesto
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-06-13