Truist acquires savings gamification app Long Game

Truist Financial Corporation has acquired Long Game, an award-winning gamified finance mobile app. 

Truist will leverage Long Game's technology to help its clients build long-term financial wellness and advance its purpose ‘to inspire and build better lives and communities’.

"This acquisition is a critical component of a broader innovation strategy at Truist that will future-proof our core businesses and attract inventive and entrepreneurial talent to help deliver new and groundbreaking solutions," said Ken Meyer, CIO for Consumer Technology and Innovation at Truist. "We're incredibly excited to welcome Lindsay and the Long Game team as we roll out this strategy and create new and distinctive experiences for our clients."

Using new techniques to engage a younger audience 

Founded in 2015, Long Game is a personal finance app that uses gamification to try to empower Gen-Z and millennials to develop healthy financial habits. 

Gamification is a technique and powerful tool which designers use to insert gameplay elements in non-gaming settings, such as finances, which they use drive user engagement. 

The app uses practices from mobile gaming, and a behavioural economics strategy called prize-linked savings, to increase savings and financial education. Financial institutions today work with Long Game to add new customers, increase usage of their products, and promote financial literacy. 

"At Truist, we are laser focused on shaping the future of finance with innovative people and products – and democratising entrepreneurial opportunity while we do it," said Vanessa Indriolo Vreeland, head of corporate development and Truist Ventures. "Long Game is a female-led business with a diverse team of incredibly talented innovators creating unique solutions to help people achieve financial confidence."

Creating disruptive technologies

Truist Financial Corporation is a purpose-driven financial services company and recognised as a top 10 US commercial bank with total assets of US$544bn as of March 31, 2022. As part of the acquisition, Long Game's engineers, designers and business leaders will join Truist's team. 

Long Game Co-founder and CEO Lindsay Holden will lead a team of engineers, product managers and designers responsible for technology innovation and development of new client-centric solutions. The team will be based in San Francisco, CA.

"Truist's commitment to help people build financial wellness is exactly what we are about at Long Game," said Holden. "We've revolutionised bank engagement and are eager to apply ourselves to creating disruptive technologies that help Truist deliver a human touch in new ways."