SoFi expands product offerings as battle for deposits heats up
Social Finance (SoFi) is set to allow customers trade stocks and ETFs without fees and explore new lending products, according to an investor letter obtained by Bloomberg.
The investment product, SoFi Invest, offers both active and automated portfolio products all without charging trading or management fees.
The move comes at a time when competition for deposits via upstart fintech companies continue to reach new heights, with Robinhood, Wealthfront, and Acorns all expanding checking, savings, and low-cost investment product offerings.
Meanwhile, SoFi also intends to round out its lending products with new offerings, amidst stalled quarterly loan growth. This past quarter originations softened to $2.24 billion, down from $2.5 billion the prior quarter and $3 billion before that, according to Bloomberg. To be sure, seasonality can impact origination volumes with 1Q typically the lowest for other consumer lenders.
As the company moves past its challenging year and prepares for its IPO, the firm is prioritizing growth over profitability, according to the letter.
"We focused on quality over quantity and optimized the loan business for per-unit economics,” wrote CEO Anthony Noto to investors.
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