Builders & Buyers: Jason Gardner of Marqeta on Building a Fintech Giant

Builders & Buyers is dedicated to showcasing leading figures in the fintech industry and their contributions. Through candid and in-depth conversations, Stifel Bank’s Managing Directors, Josh Dorsey and Jake Moseley, aim to connect audiences with the thought leaders driving the future of finance. The series will explore personal journeys, company building, investing strategies, and topical macroeconomic conditions.

Notes from Jake Moseley, conversation moderator:

Jason Gardner is a visionary leader in the fintech space who founded and led Marqeta to incredible heights. Despite his remarkable success, Jason remains the same grounded and approachable person I met over a decade ago, which speaks volumes about his character. What stood out from our chat was Jason’s ability to navigate Marqeta through critical growth phases and financial challenges with unwavering determination. His journey from Marqeta’s inception to IPO success is packed with valuable lessons for any entrepreneur.

Jake: Let’s start a bit off-topic. Can you share a book recommendation? 

Jason: My favorite book ever is The Talisman by Stephen King and Peter Straub. It’s about a 12-year-old kid named Jack who meets a guy named Speedy Parker and finds out he can flip between our world and this other place called The Territories. His mom is dying of cancer, and in The Territories, she’s a queen who’s also dying. Jack has to race across the United States to find a talisman to save both his mom and her alternate persona from an evil force threatening both worlds. I’ve read it many times and even have an autographed copy from Stephen King.

That’s really cool. Business books are great, but sometimes it’s nice to unplug too. Now, diving into your entrepreneurial journey, how did the idea for Marqeta first come to you? 

Before Marqeta, I co-founded PropertyBridge, a payments company for the multifamily real estate industry, which we sold in October 2007. By the end of 2009, I wanted to start another payments company, this time as a sole founder. During a dinner with my friend at a sushi restaurant in San Francisco, he pulled out a bunch of Groupon coupons and said, “Hey, you should put these on a card.” That was my lightning-strike moment. I started whiteboarding the idea, discussing it with others, and discovered that every payment terminal globally, whether online or offline, was unique. This realization led us to develop the technology that Marqeta uses today. I bought the URL in February 2010, and although the journey had many twists and turns, we ultimately found a product-market fit that became wildly successful.

You mentioned deciding to start this company on your own without a co-founder. Why did you want to go it alone this time?

It was important to me to be able to control everything about building the business, and after co-founding two companies, I felt confident in my ability to hire, raise money, and build a business. Being a sole founder can be challenging, but I had the track record and wanted to do it by myself. I surrounded myself with people who were really good at things I wasn’t good at, which was a successful recipe for building Marqeta.

What were the key initial steps you took to bring Marqeta to life?

In the very early days, it’s all about storytelling. You don’t have a product, customers, or money. You need to be able to tell a compelling story, especially when raising money or convincing people to leave high-paying jobs for low-paying ones plus equity. I spent a lot of time crafting the story of what I wanted to build and why. People love stories, and when you can convey a vision compellingly, it brings out passion and convinces people to join you on the journey.

How did you handle the need to pivot Marqeta from a consumer-facing product to an enterprise B2B model?

It was hard for me and many others. You become obsessed with your original vision, but you get signals from employees, investors, the market, and customers. You need to spend time with those signals, which may tell you to build something else or iterate on what you have. It’s hard to reconcile because you want to be loyal to your vision, but the feedback is undeniable. You have to navigate this in a way that doesn’t demoralize your employees or investors. You need to convince them that pivoting is the right move. We took the core of our issuing processing business and opened up APIs so other companies could build cards to solve their business problems, not just our consumer business. Working with companies like eBay and Facebook showed us where the company could go. We pioneered modern card issuing, and the product-market fit was so strong that it welded us to our customers. We constantly hear founders and CEOs say they wouldn’t exist without us. Navigating the signals and making informed decisions for the future is crucial.

Are there key lessons or takeaways from that experience that stick with you today?

You have to listen to your customers, your people, and your investors. You need to mold the company with the right expertise and insight. I had blinders on because I knew what we needed to build. Part of the issue was that we raised money based on a different business model. However, I felt the signals and the customer feedback pointed to where we needed to go. You get a lot of feedback – some you listen to, some you don’t. As CEO, you’re responsible for the success or failure of the business. I didn’t have all the ideas, but I worked with great people with amazing ideas. The early team crafted the business into what it is today. There was a lot at stake, and we navigated it to build a successful company. 

Finding product-market fit is crucial. Can you share your journey of how Marqeta identified its product-market fit?

Product-market fit is like magic. You realize that what you’re building perfectly solves someone’s problem. I’ll never forget talking to the CTO of an on-demand delivery company. They had issues with fraud from drivers using prepaid cards for personal purchases. We developed a technology called Just-In-Time, which allowed our customers to authorize transactions based on specific criteria, effectively reducing fraud. This innovation showed us the intense product-market fit we had achieved. It allowed us to focus on on-demand delivery initially and then expand into other verticals.

Before you found product-market fit and started scaling Marqeta, you faced some financial struggles. Can you describe how you managed to navigate through this crisis both personally and professionally, and what lasting impact this experience had on your approach to leadership and entrepreneurship?

As an entrepreneur, winning is everything. Failure is simply not an option—so where can you leverage what you have to win?

Back in 2016, we were not able to hit the milestones we had communicated to investors and the board. This put us in a pickle because we couldn’t get where we needed to be without extra capital. We had several investors saying that a strategic investor needed to write this check, and when they did, others would follow.

The problem was–I couldn’t get anyone to write that check, not even the strategic investor. We had a large customer partnering with that strategic investor, and they wouldn’t want to hear that Marqeta had failed. I had several conversations, and eventually, the strategic investor said: “Listen, you need to raise money from someone you’ve never met before in the next five days. If you do it, we’ll write the check.” It felt like a silly contest, but it was something I could sink my teeth into. I ended up raising five times what they asked for in three days, which unlocked that check and everyone else’s checks. We raised over $27 million in three weeks. We went from three weeks of running out of money to raising $27 million in three days.

We surpassed our revenue goals, ending with $16 million in net revenue that year. We did $33 million the following year, then doubled that and continued to grow. It was a great investment for those who believed in us in Series C, and it allowed us to get to where we are today. Some VCs had even written us off as a zero investment, but I fought to find that money because I knew–winning was everything and failure was not an option. Ultimately, we were wildly successful, and it all stemmed from what, in hindsight, was a little contest to raise more money.

Unlocking that check took an enormous amount of stress off me. I wasn’t sleeping, I couldn’t smile, and you know me—I’m usually a happy-go-lucky guy. It was one of the most depressing times in my life, but getting that check also unlocked the vision of what we wanted to build. It was what we needed to get to where we are today.

We’ll come back to the mental health piece and struggles, because those are things all founders go through when they’re building. But first, I’d like to touch on culture. Can you elaborate on the importance of culture at Marqeta and share some effective initiatives or strategies you used to drive that culture?

It starts with a vision. You need to convince people that what you’re building will change the world. Leadership is about pointing to the moon and pushing people to get there. People at Marqeta knew their roles and responsibilities in achieving our goals. I pushed people outside their comfort zones, creating an environment where they could accomplish more than they ever thought possible. Caring deeply for your people and creating an environment where they can do their best work is crucial. Culture eats strategy for lunch. A successful company needs a strong culture.

I imagine that ringing the bell at NASDAQ in June 2021 after 11 years of building Marqeta had to be one of the most memorable moments of your life. What did you do to celebrate that accomplishment?

It was unforgettable. I slept like a rock the night before, spent time with my family, and invited past Marqetains who made an impact over the years. The day was intense and fun – I did numerous interviews, including an appearance on CNBC’s Squawk Box. We had a huge party with speeches from the board, friends, and myself. It was a blast. The next day, I woke up running a public company, which was surreal. It was one of those experiences that still feels unimaginable.

Before we switch to broader lessons for entrepreneurs, is there anything you want to add or touch on that we missed?

The fundamentals of building a business still exist. I started Marqeta in 2010, right after the 2008 crash. The market was in a completely different place. We had a bull run for nearly 13 years. Today, it’s a different environment, and raising money is harder than it was in 2010. Back then, it felt like the sky was the limit. Payment companies were different; Fintech wasn’t even a thing yet. Companies like Stripe were just getting started. Now, the Fintech environment has evolved significantly over the last 13 years.

Some key business fundamentals haven’t changed. You need to deliver a great story and back it up with results. You need to have passion for what you’re building. Don’t tell an investor you’re going to do wonderful things if you can’t deliver. It creates distrust. Investors are your business partners; they’re invested in your success. You need to communicate with them, deliver bad news early and often, and build trust. Trust is the foundation of every relationship, personal or professional, and it’s even more important with your business partners, whether they’re employees, your executive team, or your investors. Very few deliver on everything they promise initially, and investors know this. You need to be thoughtful about what you can deliver, explain any shortfalls, and how you plan to fix them.

What advice would you give entrepreneurs about timing, strategy, and raising capital?

It comes down to milestones and being ready to raise money. Unless you’re an AI company these days, raising money on just an idea is much harder. You need a clear vision and passion. I’ve invested in 70 different companies and often see entrepreneurs wanting to start a business for fame or money without understanding what it takes.

My superpower is knowing what products to build, how to market, and how to sell them. Surround yourself with people who excel in areas you’re not strong in. Be honest about what you’re good at and lean into that. When raising money, you should know what you need to do with that money to be successful. Set the right milestones, communicate effectively with your investors, and keep building and delivering. Success breeds more success, leading to more funding rounds and more pressure, but that’s part of the journey.

I remember a dinner where you mentioned that if capital is available, you should take it. Someone at that dinner was inspired and decided to raise money the next day. Do you remember that?

Yes, I do. I actually invested in that round, too. I often tell entrepreneurs that a bird in the hand is better than one in the bush. If someone offers you money, take it. You’ll always need money. Many entrepreneurs get caught up in the ownership debate, fearing dilution. But taking more money can help build a more successful business, counteracting dilution. It’s better to own a small piece of a massive pie than a big piece of a small pie. If you get money on good terms, take it. Running out of money means having no options, and the business is over.

Earlier, you touched on your struggles with mental health during the Marqeta journey. How did you deal with those challenges?

Building a business is brutal and stressful. There were times when I was miserable and stressed but couldn’t imagine doing anything else with my life. The mental health piece is about being resilient, picking yourself up, and putting on a facade even when you’re struggling. You have to keep moving forward and stay mentally tough.

How did you balance the demands of building and scaling Marqeta with being a husband and father?

I have a very supportive wife. I wasn’t always good at balancing everything, but I’m very lucky to have her. We’ve been married for 25 years this month and together for 30 years. She’s been with me through three companies.

She understood that Marqeta’s success could change our lives, so she took on the CEO role of everything outside Marqeta. She allowed me to focus on leading the company while being supportive at home. It didn’t always work perfectly. There were times when it became really challenging, and we had to work hard to put things back together.

Being a CEO brought difficult times that impacted the family. Often, when you’re running a successful business, the business makes the decisions in your life. I couldn’t always be there for the things I wanted to be there for, but she was tough and forgiving at the same time. So were my kids.

Beyond continuing to be on the board of Marqeta, what are you up to these days?

It’s pretty simple: I am just enjoying my life. I’ve been working hard; I’ve done three companies over 27 years. I recently transitioned to an independent board member, so Marqeta is still important to me. But now, I have time to take lots of vacations with my family. I’m obsessed with being a pilot. I play guitar. I talk with and invest in various entrepreneurs and businesses. I’m Jewish, so I spend time in Israel and donate to Jewish causes. I want to do things I couldn’t do before, and now I can because I have the resources. It’s about enjoying my life at this point. After stepping down as CEO, I actually had another business idea and started working on it. People offered me money, but my friends advised me to reconsider, and they were right. I decided not to start another business. It was a reckoning for me, and I’m glad I chose to enjoy my life and do what I want. I’m lucky to wake up every day and decide what I want to do.

Beyond the interview:

Here are links to where you can get to know Jason better.

• LinkedIn
• Website