# PayJoy

PayJoy is an Asset Manager based in San Francisco, United States.

## Overview

- **Organization type:** Asset Manager
- **Headquarters:** San Francisco, United States
- **Region:** North America
- **Assets under management:** Undisclosed
- **Website:** www.payjoy.com
- **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/payjoy

## Regulatory record

- **Reports private funds:** No

## About

PayJoy is a Public Benefit Corporation and leading financial services provider for underserved consumers in emerging markets. It offers phone financing and credit, including the PayJoy Card, and uses a smartphone-as-collateral model. The company has reached 20 million customers across Latin America, Africa, and Asia and has financed over $3.5 billion since 2015.

## Sectors

- FinTech
- Emerging Markets

## People

- Doug Ricket — CEO
- Gib Lopez — listed on Leadership page
- Bill Yialamas — listed on Leadership page
- Bharath Ramarathinam — listed on Leadership page
- Iván Canales — listed on Leadership page
- Brad Pennington — listed on Leadership page
- Amy Pardee — listed on Leadership page
- Nick Zakrasek — listed on Leadership page
- Maryann Kongovi — listed on Leadership page
- Lucia Villar — listed on Leadership page

## Questions

### How does PayJoy's credit model work without credit scores or bank accounts?

PayJoy uses a technology that locks a customer's smartphone remotely if a payment is missed. The phone isn't permanently disabled — it becomes fully functional again after the payment is made. This transforms the device into its own collateral, allowing PayJoy to extend credit purely against asset security rather than assessing borrower income or credit history.

### What does PayJoy's customer base look like in terms of prior access to banking?

The company states that 79% of its users had no prior credit history before engaging with PayJoy. It reports serving over 20 million customers across nine countries, and 47% of its customer base is female — a demographic often disproportionately excluded from traditional banking in emerging markets.

### Who runs investment decisions at PayJoy?

PayJoy is led by CEO Doug Ricket. The board of directors includes Ricket, John Buttrick, Josh McFarland, and Todd Schell. The board advisor network features fintech investor Arjan Schütte of Core Innovation Capital, who provides domain expertise in financial inclusion and emerging-market credit.

### Is PayJoy a bank, a fintech company, or an asset manager?

PayJoy operates as a non-bank financial institution and fintech company rather than a chartered bank. It does not take deposits. It distributes a secured credit product directly through retail channels and device partnerships, bypassing traditional banking infrastructure entirely.

### Where does PayJoy operate?

PayJoy states it operates in nine emerging-market countries, providing credit access for smartphones and cash loans. The firm is headquartered in the United States, though the specific locations of its nine country operations are not enumerated on its public-facing materials.

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Last updated: 2026-08-11T15:07:41.444Z

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