Economic Development - Expansions and Relocations

[HopHead]

22 minutes ago, KJHburg said:

from the Biz Journal Robinhood may be looking at a 300 job operation here.

Sources say Robinhood is looking to add 300 jobs, open new office in Charlotte - Charlotte Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

""Real estate sources have indicated to the CBJ the company has been actively looking for space here and that it may still be finalizing a location. Some sources believe the current search has been limited to uptown and South End.  One source described the local search as highly confidential.""

so keep this on the down low and there might a sweet doughnut for you. 

Robinhood will also be filing for an IPO too: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-03-23/robinhood-is-said-to-have-filed-confidentially-for-u-s-ipo

Also in more local IPO news, it looks like Charlotte's own AvidXchange will be filing for an IPO later this year valued at up to $7B: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-avidxchange-ipo-exclusive-idUSKBN2BF1YJ 

[CarolinaDaydreamin]

2 hours ago, Blue_Devil said:

As good as the driving dynamics are for some of its competitors, range is still far  and away Tesla dominate market. Their battery tech is a good 5 years ahead of the competition. Lucid is the closest to them at 500 miles of range, but they do not have a car on the road yet. Audi and Porsche are getting 230 miles of range, even if they want to argue the EPA is wrong. Ford is getting 300. Rivian is maxing out around 400. 

Anyway, Tesla isn't going anywhere any time soon. 

For 300 Jobs, that is even cooler. I don't really like the company, but I want the talent here. 

As a Telsa driver, I can't imagine a roadtrip with any of the other cars yet. The supercharger network (especially in Florida, where I usually drive to) is phenomenal and isn't going anywhere. Telsa's self driving tech won't be matched for years, and by that time will DOMINATE the space.

[atlrvr]

The AvidXchange us huge, because it will be Charlotte's second tech IPO (after Lending Tree, but I think that deal was a bit different)

Silicon Valley is so successful because the IPO gives early employees (the most entrepreneurial) huge financial windfalls, which many then use to start new companies, or at least become VC investors.

[tozmervo]

For this financial layman, I found this very useful for explaining the Robinhood disaster a couple months ago.

Why Robinhood froze the buying of some stocks : Planet Money : NPR

[kermit]

Dang, between Robinhood, the Med School and the AvidExchange IPO the image of Charlotte as a tech town has really gained a -ton- of momentum today. 

Now if we could only get some more VC in town....

Edited March 24, 2021 by kermit

[KJHburg]

I like Robinhood (and no I am not a customer) they do have backing from Citadel Securities a huge Wall St firm.   Basically the people who make the most money from shorting stocks are billionaires and large investors so this gives the little people a way to do that too and more.   Honestly I don't trust any big Wall St firm to do what is the best for the little guy they are only out for their big investors and lining their own pockets.  Who gets the IPO priced stocks? their large investors.  The only reason I got some from Airbnb is that they specifically set aside some for their long term hosts.  

Robinhood and Citadel’s relationship comes into focus as Washington vows to examine stock-market moves (msn.com)

[Blue_Devil]

2 hours ago, KJHburg said:

It is interesting they already have 14 jobs posted in Charlotte OR Fort Mill which leads me to believe they are trying to get incentives out of either state

Careers | Robinhood

however I think their labor pool is center city south end Charlotte location 

I think in the work from home environment they want both. When the office comes in they will be in Uptown/SouthEnd

[InSouthPark]

1 hour ago, KJHburg said:

I like Robinhood (and no I am not a customer) they do have backing from Citadel Securities a huge Wall St firm.   Basically the people who make the most money from shorting stocks are billionaires and large investors so this gives the little people a way to do that too and more.   Honestly I don't trust any big Wall St firm to do what is the best for the little guy they are only out for their big investors and lining their own pockets.  Who gets the IPO priced stocks? their large investors.  The only reason I got some from Airbnb is that they specifically set aside some for their long term hosts.  

Robinhood and Citadel’s relationship comes into focus as Washington vows to examine stock-market moves (msn.com)

Robinhood used to be the only game in town for zero-cost trading.   Not anymore.  Fidelity and others have no cost trading, including option trading.  I moved all my stuff out of Robinhood to Fidelity.  Fidelity is MUCH faster at filling orders.  No, their UI is no where close...but you can still track in Robinhood and trade in another brokerage.  I had to contact customer service twice in the past year at Robinhood and each time took TWO WEEKS to get a response.  That is insane.   Screw them.  Oh yeah with Robinhood, expect to get 3 different 1099's, all late, because they can't send out the correct one the first time.  I am already got my first corrected 1099 for 2020. 

[Madison Parkitect]

1 hour ago, InSouthPark said:

Robinhood used to be the only game in town for zero-cost trading.   Not anymore.  Fidelity and others have no cost trading, including option trading.  I moved all my stuff out of Robinhood to Fidelity.  Fidelity is MUCH faster at filling orders.  No, their UI is no where close...but you can still track in Robinhood and trade in another brokerage.  I had to contact customer service twice in the past year at Robinhood and each time took TWO WEEKS to get a response.  That is insane.   Screw them.  Oh yeah with Robinhood, expect to get 3 different 1099's, all late, because they can't send out the correct one the first time.  I am already got my first corrected 1099 for 2020. 

Also screw Robinhood for the way they dealt with the GameStop issue.

[Blue_Devil]

17 minutes ago, Madison Parkitect said:

Also screw Robinhood for the way they dealt with the GameStop issue.

Again I do not like the company, but the GME scandal barely hurt their daily user amounts. On top of that, if Robinhood is moving jobs here, it could bring other competitors, like SoFi, WeBull, etc. They poach off each other. 

[InTheYear2000]

48 minutes ago, Blue_Devil said:

Again I do not like the company, but the GME scandal barely hurt their daily user amounts. On top of that, if Robinhood is moving jobs here, it could bring other competitors, like SoFi, WeBull, etc. They poach off each other. 

The brokerage world is heavy into poaching employee bases. Shortly after Merrill opened a campus in Jacksonville, Fidelity opened an office Directly across the street.  I suspect Robinhood's existing operations centers in Orlando, Denver and Westlake were influenced by Schwab and Fidelity locations.   

[Blue_Devil]

30 minutes ago, InTheYear2000 said:

The brokerage world is heavy into poaching employee bases. Shortly after Merrill opened a campus in Jacksonville, Fidelity opened an office Directly across the street.  I suspect Robinhood's existing operations centers in Orlando, Denver and Westlake were influenced by Schwab and Fidelity locations.   

Yup, Robinhood will be poaching from our Fintech Talent which will encourage others to come, to poach from Robinhood and others... It is a nice problem to have. 

[Robbie Charlotte]

6 minutes ago, Blue_Devil said:

Yup, Robinhood will be poaching from our Fintech Talent which will encourage others to come, to poach from Robinhood and others... It is a nice problem to have. 

And while Robinhood is looking for space in Charlotte for back-office operations, Citadel might as well look here too.  A growing share of large hedge funds are considering sunbelt locations for infrastructure teams, especially tech innovation groups.  Most hedge funds are too small to put up newsworthy headcounts for such sunbelt-based operations, but a firm like Citadel could register a decent-sized headcount for something like this. 

Miami appears to be "cleaning up" in the area of sunbelt-based hedge fund expansions (and not just back-office either).  I'd submit that when a hedge fund's sunbelt expansion is for uber-wealthy founding partners, Miami has the advantage.  When it's to grow infrastructure, operational capacity, or to launch a tech innovation team, I think a city like Charlotte is competitive - although Raleigh might have an edge there.

Edited March 24, 2021 by Robbie Charlotte

[Blue_Devil]

Just now, Robbie Charlotte said:

And while Robinhood is looking for space in Charlotte for back-office operations, Citadel might as well look here as well.  A growing share of large hedge funds are considering sunbelt locations for infrastructure teams, especially tech innovation groups.  Most hedge funds are too small to put up newsworthy headcounts for such sunbelt-based operations, but a firm like Citadel could register a decent-sized headcount for something like this. 

Miami appears to be "cleaning up" in the area of sunbelt-based hedge fund expansions (and not just back-office either).  I'd submit that when a hedge fund's sunbelt expansion is for uber-wealthy founding partners, Miami has the advantage.  When it's to grow infrastructure, operational capacity, or to launch a tech innovation team, I think a city like Charlotte is competitive - although Raleigh might have an edge there.

I am not sure Raleigh will attract the banking talent. Miami makes sense, but is getting expensive. I suspect Fort Lauderdale is going to see a large amount of back office jobs spring up soon. 

[Robbie Charlotte]

10 minutes ago, Blue_Devil said:

I am not sure Raleigh will attract the banking talent. Miami makes sense, but is getting expensive. I suspect Fort Lauderdale is going to see a large amount of back office jobs spring up soon. 

When a NYC-based financial services firm (buy-side or sell-side) starts scouting cities for a tech innovation hub to drive the "digital transformation and strategy" of the enterprise, does Charlotte have enough branding in this area to be considered a locational stalwart for such expansions?   Not going to lie, I've been on calls with Asset Managers considering the sunbelt, and when they get around to NC, they know Raleigh well and have preconceptions that it is rich with talent thanks to Duke/UNC CH.  Charlotte is a bit more unclear, and to them is more full of the traditional white-collar consumer and business bankers along with their risk management/operational counterparts. 

I should add that these digital transformation roles are not just tech, but high tech.  Unclear to me whether Charlotte has even established itself as a High Tech hub in banking. 

Edited March 24, 2021 by Robbie Charlotte

[InTheYear2000]

1 minute ago, Robbie Charlotte said:

When a NYC-based financial services firm (buy-side or sell-side) starts scouting cities for a tech innovation hub to drive the "digital transformation and strategy" of the enterprise, does Charlotte have enough branding in this area to be considered a locational stalwart for such expansions?   Not going to lie, I've been on calls with Asset Managers considering the sunbelt, and when they get around to NC, they know Raleigh well and have preconceptions that it is rich with talent thanks to Duke/UNC CH.  Charlotte is a bit more unclear, and to them is more full of the traditional white-collar consumer and business bankers along with their risk management/operational counterparts. 

I should add that these digital transformation roles are not just tech, but high tech.  Unclear to me whether Charlotte has even established itself as a High Tech hub in banking. 

I work in the industry and I know teams here that work with everything from distributed ledger to ops AI. But, with that said almost everyone has at least some of their team located in offices in NY/NJ and the Bay Area. So Charlotte has some room to grow to fill all of the skills. I didn't think RDU had the Bank end covered quite as well from my experience but I've exclusively worked for the "bulge bracket" so maybe I'm not picking up the stuff happening elsewhere.  

It's also worth noting that none of those Robinhood postings are tech, maybe that's coming. These roles make it sound like the majority of this location will be a service/operations center.    

[atlrvr]

1 hour ago, Robbie Charlotte said:

When a NYC-based financial services firm (buy-side or sell-side) starts scouting cities for a tech innovation hub to drive the "digital transformation and strategy" of the enterprise, does Charlotte have enough branding in this area to be considered a locational stalwart for such expansions?   Not going to lie, I've been on calls with Asset Managers considering the sunbelt, and when they get around to NC, they know Raleigh well and have preconceptions that it is rich with talent thanks to Duke/UNC CH.  Charlotte is a bit more unclear, and to them is more full of the traditional white-collar consumer and business bankers along with their risk management/operational counterparts. 

I should add that these digital transformation roles are not just tech, but high tech.  Unclear to me whether Charlotte has even established itself as a High Tech hub in banking. 

Serious request, can you post a few open roles (not in Charlotte) that you would consider High Tech at buy-side or sell-side firms?  Curious what that job profile looks like on paper. 

[RANYC]

1 hour ago, atlrvr said:

Serious request, can you post a few open roles (not in Charlotte) that you would consider High Tech at buy-side or sell-side firms?  Curious what that job profile looks like on paper. 

I follow and track hundreds of these "High-Tech for High Finance" roles, and the common thread is that the lion's share of them require PhDs or those pursuing a PhD.  Yes, they employ infrastructure tech as well, but the roles driving locational strategy for tech innovation centers are the High-Tech roles.  Perception is that Raleigh-Durham cranks out PhD Tech, and Charlotte doesn't. 

Overview

As a Machine Learning Engineer, you will design, develop, and deploy algorithms used to optimize our trading activities at X. You will join a team of engineers and researchers that specialize in the application of machine learning techniques, particularly deep learning techniques. Combining cutting-edge research with real industry data, Machine Learning Engineers will build tools that ultimately have impact on the financial markets themselves.

This work will be challenging, fast-paced, and competitive. Whether the application is on time series modeling or natural language understanding, you will work with breakthrough results in deep learning and continually iterate upon new techniques. In addition, success in this role will rely on effective communication across several departments.  X thrives in the collaboration between our quantitative researchers, developers and traders, and our Machine Learning team is no exception.

What we're looking for

• Graduating PhD students or postdoctoral researchers in Machine Learning, Computer Science, Statistics, Physics, Applied Mathematics, or related field
• Strong programming skills in Python and/or C++
• Experience in writing production-level code
• Solid, analytical problem-solving skills
• Exceptional communication skills, both in the ability to understand others and to make yourself clearly understood
• Demonstrated experience working with and drawing conclusions from large data sets
• Visa sponsorship is available for this position

 

Edited March 24, 2021 by RANYC

[RANYC]

20 minutes ago, RANYC said:

I follow and track hundreds of these "High-Tech for High Finance" roles, and the common thread is that the lion's share of them require PhDs or those pursuing a PhD.  Yes, they employ infrastructure tech as well, but the roles driving locational strategy for tech innovation centers are the High-Tech roles.  Perception is that Raleigh-Durham cranks out PhD Tech, and Charlotte doesn't. 

Overview

As a Machine Learning Engineer, you will design, develop, and deploy algorithms used to optimize our trading activities at X. You will join a team of engineers and researchers that specialize in the application of machine learning techniques, particularly deep learning techniques. Combining cutting-edge research with real industry data, Machine Learning Engineers will build tools that ultimately have impact on the financial markets themselves.

This work will be challenging, fast-paced, and competitive. Whether the application is on time series modeling or natural language understanding, you will work with breakthrough results in deep learning and continually iterate upon new techniques. In addition, success in this role will rely on effective communication across several departments.  X thrives in the collaboration between our quantitative researchers, developers and traders, and our Machine Learning team is no exception.

What we're looking for

• Graduating PhD students or postdoctoral researchers in Machine Learning, Computer Science, Statistics, Physics, Applied Mathematics, or related field
• Strong programming skills in Python and/or C++
• Experience in writing production-level code
• Solid, analytical problem-solving skills
• Exceptional communication skills, both in the ability to understand others and to make yourself clearly understood
• Demonstrated experience working with and drawing conclusions from large data sets
• Visa sponsorship is available for this position

 

Your Objectives

• Conceptualize valuation strategies, develop and continuously improve upon mathematical models, and help translate algorithms into code
• Back test and implement trading models and signals in a live trading environment
• Use unconventional data sources to drive innovation
• Conduct research and statistical analysis to build and refine monetization systems for trading signals

 

Your Skills & Talents

• Advanced training in Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, Computer Science, or another highly quantitative field (Bachelor’s, Master’s, PhD degree)
• Strong knowledge of probability and statistics (e.g.,machine learning, time-series analysis, pattern recognition, NLP)
• Prior experience working in a data driven research environment
• Experience with NoSQL databases (e.g.,MongoDB)
• Experience with distributed computing using MapReduce
• Experience with analytical packages (e.g., R,Matlab)
• Independent research experience
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and thrive in a fast-paced team environment
• Excellent analytical skills, with strong attention to detail
• Strong written and verbal communication skills

[atlrvr]

Got it.  I hired a similar position somewhat recently, and what I found are the PhD's are reliant on efficient markets for information gathering, which is problematic for active investing. I gave up on the lack imagination, and hired an M.A. in Applied Economics instead with sell-side quant trading experience.  That said, even though I was open on either NY or Charlotte, basically all candidates were NY.

I bring this up, because if the future of finance is augmented decisioning, putting a bunch of PhD's from Georgia Tech in an Atlanta satellite office detached from fundamental investors (like Blackrock) is odd unless it's purely for index funds.  I'd argue high margin business is still fundamental credit investing and firms would be best served having these tech roles sitting in the same office.  Charlotte is definitely sitting alongside Atlanta and Miami (but all are <5% of NY).

[joenc]

 

2 hours ago, RANYC said:

Your Objectives

• Conceptualize valuation strategies, develop and continuously improve upon mathematical models, and help translate algorithms into code
• Back test and implement trading models and signals in a live trading environment
• Use unconventional data sources to drive innovation
• Conduct research and statistical analysis to build and refine monetization systems for trading signals

 

Your Skills & Talents

• Advanced training in Mathematics, Statistics, Physics, Computer Science, or another highly quantitative field (Bachelor’s, Master’s, PhD degree)
• Strong knowledge of probability and statistics (e.g.,machine learning, time-series analysis, pattern recognition, NLP)
• Prior experience working in a data driven research environment
• Experience with NoSQL databases (e.g.,MongoDB)
• Experience with distributed computing using MapReduce
• Experience with analytical packages (e.g., R,Matlab)
• Independent research experience
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and thrive in a fast-paced team environment
• Excellent analytical skills, with strong attention to detail
• Strong written and verbal communication skills

This is cutting edge in finance 2021? This is a decade behind big tech.

[Desert Power]

Busy week of announcements. Charlotte is really continuing to pick up steam in a lot of ways. I'm bearish on the idea good zoning/new transit will actually be passed, but there is still a ton of momentum. A lot of it from the private sector.

[cltheel.sdl]

FWIW, here in Seattle (obviously tech biased) RDU has greater name recognition than Charlotte, primarily because Raleigh is viewed as a mini-Austin of sorts.  I'm in the multifamily industry and Austin is probably the biggest "up and coming" market in the country right now (largely due to California tech opening big offices in Austin).  Any market that is viewed as "the next Austin" will get tons of attention.  Charlotte sort of falls under the radar - one of the reasons why I think Charlotte is such a great opportunity for us to buy right now.  I think it unfairly doesn't get as much attention as Raleigh, Austin, and Nashville, especially considering the growth percentages are basically on par and the long-term market fundamentals are equally as favorable.  Charlotte just isn't as sexy, mostly due to perceived lack of culture or a cool vibe.  I think a lot of these big shops are dead wrong and multifamily buyers in Charlotte are going to see greater upside as a result.  I'm pushing hard for my firm to buy in Charlotte (I'm a homer, for sure, but there are many logical reasons to buy as previously mentioned).   I'm hopeful that Charlotte will see greater tech relocations/growth as I think that will help change the perception.

[RANYC]

6 hours ago, atlrvr said:

Got it.  I hired a similar position somewhat recently, and what I found are the PhD's are reliant on efficient markets for information gathering, which is problematic for active investing. I gave up on the lack imagination, and hired an M.A. in Applied Economics instead with sell-side quant trading experience.  That said, even though I was open on either NY or Charlotte, basically all candidates were NY.

I bring this up, because if the future of finance is augmented decisioning, putting a bunch of PhD's from Georgia Tech in an Atlanta satellite office detached from fundamental investors (like Blackrock) is odd unless it's purely for index funds.  I'd argue high margin business is still fundamental credit investing and firms would be best served having these tech roles sitting in the same office.  Charlotte is definitely sitting alongside Atlanta and Miami (but all are <5% of NY).

I'd agree with your point on the use case distinctions between active and passive investing.  Setting up Sunbelt-based High Tech for High Finance centers of excellence is a somewhat recent phenomenon, and not clear to me which Sunbelt city leads the pack.  I agree that NYC dominates at the moment, but mid-sized trading firms and boutiques must compete with Big Tech and Investment Banks for such talent, and wonder if there's some chance to differentiate in the competition by offering a lifestyle advantage by expanding to the Sunbelt.

6 hours ago, joenc said:

 

This is cutting edge in finance 2021? This is a decade behind big tech.

Edited March 25, 2021 by RANYC

[atlrvr]

On 3/24/2021 at 9:29 AM, KJHburg said:

from the Biz Journal Robinhood may be looking at a 300 job operation here.

Sources say Robinhood is looking to add 300 jobs, open new office in Charlotte - Charlotte Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

""Real estate sources have indicated to the CBJ the company has been actively looking for space here and that it may still be finalizing a location. Some sources believe the current search has been limited to uptown and South End.  One source described the local search as highly confidential.""

so keep this on the down low and there might a sweet doughnut for you. 

They are apparently going to the Deloitte building at legacy union.