I built a billion dollar company in 18 months - My First Million Recap

Podcast: My First Million

Published: 2025-08-20

Duration: 52 minutes

Guests: Eric Glyman

Summary

Eric Glyman shares how he and his co-founder built Ramp into a billion-dollar company in just 18 months by leveraging speed, focus, and an innovative business model that disrupted the corporate credit card market.

What Happened

Eric Glyman, co-founder of Ramp, explains how he and Kareem Attia aimed to build a billion-dollar company in just 18 months. They achieved this audacious goal by focusing on speed, reverse-engineering their milestones, and launching Ramp publicly in 2020, only a year after incorporation. Despite the pandemic, Ramp’s revenue grew 70% in 2021, culminating in an $8.1 billion valuation by the end of the year. Glyman attributes their success to designing the company for velocity, with clear, aggressive goals like being approved by networks and banks within weeks of starting operations.

The episode dives into Ramp's business model, which capitalizes on interchange fees – the small percentages issuers earn every time a card is swiped. Glyman breaks down the financial ecosystem, explaining how players like Stripe and Capital One profit and where Ramp fits in by offering customers better expense visibility and cost control. He also discusses Ramp’s strategy to differentiate itself from legacy players like Amex and Chase, which have not significantly innovated in decades.

Eric shares insights into the company’s rapid scaling, noting that by the time Ramp hit $100 million in annual revenue, it had grown to 200 employees. He contrasts this with his previous experience at Paribus, where scaling even a small team was a challenge. Glyman emphasizes the importance of tools like Rippling and HubSpot in managing operations and scaling efficiently.

The conversation touches on early ideas the founders considered before starting Ramp, including manufactured homes and creator credit cards. Glyman candidly reflects on why they avoided certain industries, acknowledging his lack of personal expertise and the regulatory complexities of housing. Ultimately, they chose to build on their knowledge of the credit card space from Paribus, which they had sold to Capital One for a mid-eight-figure deal.

A fascinating segment unpacks the history of credit cards in America, tracing their origins to early 20th-century department stores and the 1950s rollout of BankAmericard. Glyman argues that the U.S.’s credit culture is unique, enabling middle-class growth and entrepreneurship but also creating risks of over-borrowing.

Glyman describes Ramp’s ambition to become a 100-year company by focusing on compounding growth. He contrasts this long-term vision with the typical emphasis on explosive short-term growth in the startup world. He cites lessons from biographies of founders like John D. Rockefeller and Steve Jobs, drawing inspiration from their ability to balance innovation with consistency.

The episode closes with reflections on personal growth and leadership. Glyman shares how his upbringing shaped his introspective and balanced approach to challenges. He stresses the importance of emotional regulation, intentional time management, and surrounding oneself with complementary team members to offset personal weaknesses.

Key Insights

• Ramp hit an $8.1 billion valuation within 18 months by designing for speed—launching to the public just one year after incorporation and securing bank and network approvals within weeks. Most startups drag these milestones out for years, but Ramp’s aggressive timelines forced immediate traction.
• Interchange fees—the tiny percentages card issuers earn on every swipe—fund Ramp’s business model. Unlike legacy players like Amex, which lean on rewards to lock in customers, Ramp wins by offering real-time expense visibility and tools to lower costs, flipping the loyalty script.
• When Ramp hit $100 million in annual revenue, it only had 200 employees, thanks to tools like Rippling and HubSpot that streamlined its operations. Glyman contrasts this with his earlier startup, where scaling even a small team without these tools was chaotic and inefficient.
• The U.S.’s credit culture, rooted in 1950s innovations like BankAmericard, fuels middle-class entrepreneurship but creates a paradox: it enables rapid growth while exposing millions to the risk of over-borrowing. Glyman argues this tension is unique to America, shaping how businesses and consumers operate.

Key Questions Answered

How did Eric Glyman build Ramp into a billion-dollar company in 18 months?

Eric Glyman and his co-founder focused on speed, reverse-engineered their milestones, and launched Ramp publicly within a year of incorporation. By 2021, they had achieved 70% revenue growth and an $8.1 billion valuation through strategic scaling and leveraging interchange fees in the corporate credit card market.

What is Ramp’s business model, as explained on My First Million?

Ramp earns revenue from interchange fees, the small percentages issuers receive every time a card is swiped. The company differentiates itself by offering businesses tools for expense visibility and cost control, in contrast to legacy players like Amex and Chase.

What lessons did Eric Glyman share about scaling a startup quickly?

Glyman emphasized setting aggressive goals, using tools like Rippling and HubSpot to manage rapid growth, and hiring complementary team members to offset personal weaknesses. He noted that Ramp’s clear focus on velocity allowed the team to scale to 200 employees while achieving $100 million in annual revenue.