According to GeekWire, Wisconsin-based HSA Bank has acquired fintech startup SecureSave, a 2020 spinout from Seattle’s Pioneer Square Labs. The deal was completed on Thursday, though financial terms were not disclosed. SecureSave, which helps employers offer emergency savings accounts (ESAs) as a benefit, has raised about $28 million from investors including PSL, Seachange, IA Ventures, and three banks. The startup employs 23 people, mostly in Seattle, and will continue operating its platform. Co-founded by CEO Devin Miller, CTO Bassam Saliba, and TV personality Suze Orman, SecureSave currently supports more than 60,000 active account holders who have collectively saved over $100 million.
Why this deal makes sense
Look, this is a classic case of a niche fintech finding a perfect home inside a larger, established player. SecureSave built a solid product for emergency savings, but scaling a standalone benefits platform is brutally hard. You’re constantly selling to HR departments and competing for budget. HSA Bank, on the other hand, already has those relationships. They’re a leader in healthcare savings accounts, so they’re literally already in the benefits conversation with thousands of employers. This isn’t an acquihire; it’s a distribution play. HSA Bank gets to bolt a new, relevant product onto its existing sales engine overnight.
The bigger picture for employees
Here’s the thing: the emergency savings crisis is real. So many people live paycheck-to-paycheck, and the idea of saving for a rainy day feels impossible. SecureSave’s model, where employers can contribute or match savings just like a 401(k), is genuinely clever. It tackles financial stress at its root. And the timing is interesting. CEO Devin Miller pointed to proposed legislation, like the Emergency Savings Enhancement Act from Senators Booker and Young, as evidence of growing momentum for this category. Basically, having a giant like HSA Bank behind this could legitimize ESAs as a standard workplace benefit, not just a nice-to-have perk.
What’s next for SecureSave?
The report says the platform will keep running and serving its current clients. That’s the usual line. But the real test will be integration. Will HSA Bank simply offer it as a separate product, or will they deeply weave emergency savings into the healthcare savings experience? Imagine a dashboard where you manage your HSA for medical costs and your ESA for everything else. That could be powerful. Also, with Suze Orman as a co-founder, the brand has built-in credibility with everyday savers. HSA Bank would be smart to leverage that. The big question is whether this acquisition accelerates adoption or if the product gets lost inside a big bank’s bureaucracy. I’m leaning toward acceleration, given the strategic fit.
