Aspiration, Inc.
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Financial services |
| Founded | 2013 |
| Founder | Andrei Cherny, Joseph Sanberg |
| Headquarters | Los Angeles, California , United States |
Area served | International |
Key people | Olivia Albrecht (CEO) |
| Products | Aspiration Impact Measurement (AIM), Redwood Fund, Pay What Is Fair pricing model, Plant Your Change program, Aspiration Zero credit card (discontinued) |
Aspiration is a company specializing in sustainability-as-a-service, headquartered in Los Angeles, California and operating internationally. In March 2025, co-founder Joe Sanberg was detained on allegations of fraud.
History
Established in 2013 by Andrei Cherny and Joseph Sanberg, Aspiration began its operations in February 2015. By May 2020, the company had secured over $250 million in investment from backers such as China's Renren and Oaktree Capital Management.
In August 2021, Aspiration revealed intentions to become a publicly traded entity through a $2.3 billion merger with the special purpose acquisition company InterPrivate III Financial Partners. Ahead of this transaction, Oaktree and stakeholders linked to billionaire Steve Ballmer pledged an additional $315 million in funding.
October 2022 marked a leadership transition when Olivia Albrecht took over as CEO from Andrei Cherny, signaling a strategic move to enhance the company’s expansion efforts.
By January 2024, Aspiration was under investigation by the United States Department of Justice and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission concerning claims that it had planted 35 million trees for carbon offsetting; inquiries disclosed that only 12 million trees were actually planted. The probe included examination of actions by both Cherny and Sanberg.
Following Sanberg's felony fraud arrest, Aspiration Partners filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on March 31, 2025. The organization plans to manage its liabilities by reducing debt and liquidating assets to satisfy creditors.
Products
In April 2017, Aspiration launched Aspiration Impact Measurement (AIM) within its mobile application, which evaluates 75,000 data points to rate companies on their social and environmental impact. This feature generates a personalized AIM score reflecting customers’ purchasing patterns.
The Redwood Fund, introduced in November 2015, is a mutual fund that excludes investments in sectors such as alcohol, tobacco, weapons, nuclear energy, gambling, pornography, and fossil fuels. Nonetheless, the fund includes holdings in firms with substantial fossil fuel usage like Southwest Airlines and MSA Safety.
Aspiration’s "Pay What Is Fair" pricing model empowers customers to determine their own fees for checking and investing services, supporting the company’s customer-focused approach.
In April 2020, the "Plant Your Change" program was launched, allowing users to round up transactions to support tree planting; by April 2021, this initiative had contributed to planting over 10 million trees.
The Aspiration Zero credit card debuted in March 2021, offering cash-back incentives alongside carbon offsetting through tree planting per purchase. This card was discontinued in May 2023 as part of a strategic realignment to sharpen the company’s climate-related product offerings.
Recognition
- 2015: Awarded Best Checking Account by Money magazine
- 2016: Featured among Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company
- 2017: Listed as one of the Most Disruptive Companies of the Year by Inc. magazine
- 2021: Recognized as Best Socially Conscious Company by Money Under 30
External links
- Articles with short description
- Financial services companies established in 2013
- Financial services companies of the United States
- Financial services companies based in California
- American companies established in 2013
- Marina del Rey, California
- 2013 establishments in California
- Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2025
- 5
- Companies of the United States by year of establishment