Apple Card Architect Heads to Lightspeed to Hunt for Fintech Deals

At a moment when many investors are retreating from fintech, Lightspeed Venture Partners is doubling down. The venture capital firm has hired Aaron Frank, who built the company that became the foundation for the Apple Card, to help seek out deals in payments and lending.

The 37-year-old Frank was the co-founder and CEO of Final, the credit-card platform Goldman Sachs bought in 2018 after it partnered with Apple to build a card it hoped would revolutionize the industry. He spent the next two years working for Goldman, helping get the Apple Card off the ground. He left in mid-2020 and began investing in and advising fintechs, armed with cash from Final’s acquisition. Now he’ll be a venture partner under Justin Overdorff, who co-leads the fintech investment team, the two said in an exclusive interview.