NEW YORK, March 9, 2026, 12:25 PM EDT
SoFi Technologies slid roughly 4% Monday, caught up in a broader pullback for online lenders. With oil prices jumping and investors jittery about inflation, growth-oriented financial stocks took a hit. By midday, SoFi shares had lost 3.7%. 1
This one stings for SoFi. The company had just tried to calm nerves last week—first, CEO Anthony Noto picked up about $1 million in shares on the open market. Then came news of a Mastercard tie-up centered on SoFiUSD, its crypto token linked to the U.S. dollar. Still, Monday’s action showed broader worries continued to swamp any positive reaction to those moves. 2
That timing isn’t great for a company pitching itself as less dependent on lending. Back in January, SoFi’s fourth-quarter numbers showed fee-based businesses—areas like investing and payments, where loan income isn’t the main driver—pushing adjusted revenue to a record $1 billion. 3
SoFi slipped to $17.78 at its low, but shares had bounced back to $18.21 by 12:10 p.m. ET. Affirm dropped 3.6%, while Upstart shed roughly 2.1%.
The mood across Wall Street faltered, main indexes tumbling over 1% earlier after a crude rally sent jitters through the market. Fresh Middle East tensions had investors fretting over sticky inflation. “Higher oil prices are playing into fears that inflation could take off to the upside once again,” said David Morrison, senior market analyst at Trade Nation. 1
A Form 4 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that Noto picked up 56,000 SoFi shares on March 2, paying an average price of $17.8842 each. That buy pushed his direct stake up to 11,675,452 shares. 2
SoFi announced on March 3 that it’s teaming up with Mastercard, aiming to let certain transactions on the card network settle in SoFiUSD. Both SoFi Bank and clients using Galileo—SoFi’s tech arm—are set to be early adopters. CEO Anthony Noto described the token as “at the heart of our strategy.” Mastercard’s Sherri Haymond said the initiative targets bringing “trusted digital currencies” to a “global scale.” 4
SoFi’s campaign aims to prove it’s not just a digital lender. Fourth-quarter loan originations hit a record $10.5 billion, up 46% year-on-year. Financial services revenue climbed 78% to $456.7 million. 3
Yet SoFi’s crypto push isn’t a done deal. The company flagged ongoing regulatory and execution risks, noting the Mastercard launch depends on regulatory sign-off and network policies. Shifts in digital-asset rules, market appetite, or their own delivery could change how things play out. 4
Right now, traders seem to be watching oil prices, inflation, and the U.S. rate outlook, rather than paying much attention to SoFi’s new product rollout. Even with insider share purchases and a fresh payments deal with Mastercard, the stock continues to swing like a high-beta fintech, as investors retreat from risk. 1
