Bilt Rewards raises $60 million
Bilt Rewards, a startup enabling renters to earn points on rent payments, announced a funding round of $60 million from Wells Fargo, Mastercard, and a group of the nation’s largest real estate owners including Blackstone, AvalonBay Communities, Douglas Elliman, New Valley Ventures, Equity Residential, GID, LEN×, The Moinian Group, Morgan Properties, Related Group, and Starwood Capital Group among others. According to Crunchbase, digital lending software company Blend Labs is also an investor, and PruVen Capital, the VC firm backed by Prudential, lists Bilt as part of its investment portfolio.
Launched in June 2021 by Kairos HQ, a VC firm and accelerator building companies in housing and healthcare, the Bilt Rewards loyalty program is available to renters living within the Bilt Rewards Alliance, a network of more than 2 million rental units across the country, or by using the Bilt Mastercard, the first credit card that can be used to pay rent with no fees at any rental unit in the U.S.
Bilt Rewards members can earn up to 50,000 points on rent per year, and can continue to earn unlimited points through Bilt Mastercard transactions. When paying rent through the Bilt Rewards app, members can also have their rent payments reported to the credit bureaus, which can help build their credit history.
“The concept of Bilt is simple. And the support from our partners in this early funding round validates that we are serving a real need for both consumers and businesses. In the same way airlines and hotels have created loyalists through their rewards programs over the last several decades, Bilt has introduced a new way to turn renting into an enjoyable experience that benefits everyone, and can even build a path towards homeownership. We are continuing to add enhanced benefits and new partners to build the best program possible, and we’re only just getting started.” – Bilt CEO and founder Ankur Jain.
Bottom Line: Ankur Jain is the co-founder and chairman of Rhino, which offers an alternative to security deposits.
