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KJHburg

By KJHburg
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atlrvr Metropolitan Area

atlrvr

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https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/09/varo-bank-raises-510m-at-a-2-5b-valuation/

Varo acknowledge they opened up a 3rd hub in Charlotte in this release.

Charlotte Observer has an article on this, but behind paywall.  Not sure how much info there would be beyond the header which indicated > 100 people hired in Charlotte so far since 2Q21.

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Maybe they’ll go to Richmond. 

KJHburg
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I sent my British tech consultant friend the article about Bank of London and here is what he said (and he has been to Charlotte multiple times) ""interesting development. It makes an interesting

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KJHburg Ecumenopolis

KJHburg

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4 minutes ago, atlrvr said:

https://techcrunch.com/2021/09/09/varo-bank-raises-510m-at-a-2-5b-valuation/

Varo acknowledge they opened up a 3rd hub in Charlotte in this release.

Charlotte Observer has an article on this, but behind paywall.  Not sure how much info there would be beyond the header which indicated > 100 people hired in Charlotte so far since 2Q21.

finally they announce something.  do we still think their office is going to Camp Northend or somewhere else?  These Robinhood, CreditKarma now Varo Bank get the attention of other larger San Fran fintech titans for sure...

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atlrvr Metropolitan Area

atlrvr

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CBJ picking up the story:

Highlights on employment size and office location:

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2021/09/09/varo-bank-east-coast-hub-jobs-financial-technology.html

Quote

 

Varo Money Inc., with the all-digital, nationally chartered Varo Bank, is looking to build a presence here with eventually a few hundred employees, said Pepe Porrata, Varo's locally based chief operating officer. The fintech firm has also narrowed its options for an office space here. Porrata said Varo would like to open a location early next year, depending on Covid-19.

The firm has four leading real estate contenders here, all in relatively central parts of Charlotte, Porrata said. Varo is seeking a less traditional space — one that encourages collaboration and could house different employee divisions, he said. He declined to provide more details.

 

With that, doubling down on Camp North End bet.

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Blue_Devil Burg

Blue_Devil

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4 minutes ago, atlrvr said:

CBJ picking up the story:

Highlights on employment size and office location:

https://www.bizjournals.com/charlotte/news/2021/09/09/varo-bank-east-coast-hub-jobs-financial-technology.html

With that, doubling down on Camp North End bet.

Camp North End, or the Line in South End... Seems less corporate to me and has some big floor plates. 

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KJHburg Ecumenopolis

KJHburg

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ere is a Biz Journal article on Varo Bank's expansion sounds like creative office space like that in FreeMoreWest or CampNorthend or maybe even in the new renovated space next to Optimist Hall.

""Varo Money Inc., with the all-digital, nationally chartered Varo Bank, is looking to build a presence here with eventually a few hundred employees, said Pepe Porrata, Varo's locally based chief operating officer. The fintech firm has also narrowed its options for an office space here. Porrata said Varo would like to open a location early next year, depending on Covid-19. The firm has four leading real estate contenders here, all in relatively central parts of Charlotte, Porrata said. Varo is seeking a less traditional space — one that encourages collaboration and could house different employee divisions, he said. He declined to provide more details.  This will be Varo's first office on this side of the country. It continues to operate a primary office in San Francisco, but the official headquarters moved to Salt Lake City last year. "We recognize that we have to have national presence," Porrata said. "It allows us to attract more talent, a diversity of talent, and second of all, it allows us to get closer to our customers.  Porrata became Varo's first employee in Charlotte in April. There are now a little more than 100 people based here. The firm has 20 local job listings on its website, ranging from software engineering to fraud analytics and customer service. Varo looked at a number of cities on the East Coast, he said. It was attracted to this market because of a strong financial-services sector, including the growing fintech industry.""

Varo Bank setting up East Coast hub in Charlotte, plans to hire hundreds - Charlotte Business Journal (bizjournals.com)

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CLT2014 Town

CLT2014

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12 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

Hopefully, some of these people will be based in Charlotte.

Bank of America Announces Senior Leadership Changes

Cathy Bessant has been the most prominent Charlotte-based executive. Losing her to Europe is a loss for her involvement and care for our city.  Her successors are based in Charlotte.

New leaders reporting to Moynihan based in Charlotte:
Aditya Bhasin - Chief Tech and Info Officer
Tom Scrivener - Chief Operations Officer
(the above two split what used to be Cathy's combined org)
D. Steve Boland - Chief Admin Officer

New leaders based in New York:
Alastair Borthwick - Chief Financial Officer

New leaders based in Boston:
Lauren Mogensen - Legal

Edited by CLT2014
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SydneyCarton Town

SydneyCarton

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Just now, CLT2014 said:

Cathy Bessant has been the most prominent Charlotte-based executive. Losing her to Europe is a loss for her involvement and care for our city. 

New leaders reporting to Moynihan based in Charlotte:
Aditya Bhasin - Chief Tech and Info Officer
Tom Scrivener - Chief Operations Officer
(the above two split what used to be Cathy's combined org)
D. Steve Boland - Chief Admin Officer

New leaders based in New York:
Alastair Borthwick - Chief Financial Officer

New leaders based in Boston:
Lauren Mogensen - Legal

I agree about Bessant.  Isn't she the last of the core Charlotte people?  I wonder where in Europe she's going.  London isn't remotely what it used to be.

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CLT2014 Town

CLT2014

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24 minutes ago, SydneyCarton said:

I agree about Bessant.  Isn't she the last of the core Charlotte people?  I wonder where in Europe she's going.  London isn't remotely what it used to be.

Paris. 

Locations of direct reports to Moynihan (from what I can tell):
Charlotte:
Katy Knox - President of Bank of America Private Bank
Aditya Bhasin - Chief Tech and Info Officer
Tom Scrivener - Chief Ops Officer
D. Steve Boland - Chief Admin Officer
Christine Katziff - Chief Audit Exec

New York:
Jim DeMare - President Global Markets
Matthew Koder - President Global Corporate and Investment Banking
Alastair Borthwick - Chief Financial Officer
Sheri Bronstein - Chief HR Officer
Geoff Greener - Chief Risk Officer
Bruce Thompson - Wholesale Credit
Andy Sieg -  President of Merrill Lynch

Boston:
Dean Athanasia - President of Consumer, Small Business, Commercial, Business Banking
Lauren Mogensen - Global General Counsel

London:
Bernie Mensah - President of International

Paris:
Cathy Bessant - Global Strategy

San Francisco:
Thong Nguyen - Global Strategy & Enterprise Platforms

Business Line heads on Management Team, not reporting directly to Moynihan:
Los Angeles:
Raul Anaya - President of Business Banking (reporting to Athanasia)

Atlanta:
Aron Levine - President of Preferred (reporting to Athanasia)
Wendy Stewart - President of Global Commercial Banking (reporting to Athanasia)

Boston:
Holly O'Neill - President of Retail (reporting to Athanasia)

 

Edited by CLT2014
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KJHburg Ecumenopolis

KJHburg

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Chime is a competitor to Varo Bank which just announced a new office here in Charlotte.  Which one of these fintech banks is going to be able to control its costs better?

from the San Fran Biz Times

""Fintech Chime has closed its deal for a sizable new office in San Francisco. I reported in May that the mobile banking startup, which is headquartered at 77 Maiden Lane, was eyeing a lease for just under 200,000 square-feet at 101 California St., a 48-story skyscraper owned by Hines.   That deal is officially signed, with Chime committing to a 12-year tenancy in the building, according to sources with knowledge of the transaction. Chime is reportedly paying $85 per-square-foot full-service for the space. ""

That 85 bucks a square foot is almost 2x the best newest office space rate here in Charlotte!  I sure hope Chime is profitable now as they will need it.  On the other hand it much easier to scale a company in a place like Charlotte where the space is half the cost! 

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SydneyCarton Town

SydneyCarton

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That's cheap.  The leases at new buildings in Manhattan like 425 Park and 1 Vanderbilt go for over $200/sf.   The top floors leased for $300/sf.

https://nypost.com/2021/03/21/425-park-avenue-tower-signs-new-tenant-hellman-friedman/

Further, Citadel's CEO paid $240m for a penthouse condo at 220 CPS.

https://www.6sqft.com/get-a-rare-look-inside-220-central-park-south-thanks-to-this-59kmonth-rental/

In any event, the QC's low cost office, space, housing, and salaries should lead to more job creation and hopefully, more towers. 

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SydneyCarton Town

SydneyCarton

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46 minutes ago, navigator319 said:

^ that's way out of context for todays market.  Can get space in 1 WTC for in the $60's per sqft along with the rest of downtown NYC.  The midtown 'premium' is now 120-150 top of line.  

You're incorrect.  

https://therealdeal.com/2021/07/21/sl-green-asking-record-322-psf-at-one-vanderbilt/

Despite adding tens of millions of new office space over the past few years, Manhattan still has a lot of old office space, which is less desirable and rents for a lot less.  That being said, many new office buildings are being planned and built to this day, and space in all of them is well over $100/sf.

Manhattan is a different world.  Nowhere else in America are there apartments that sell for $10,000/sf.

The bigger point is that hopefully, the astronomical costs in NY and SF will lead to more jobs for Charlotte.

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SydneyCarton Town

SydneyCarton

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23 hours ago, navigator319 said:

Hah your cherry picking as a data point 2 unique floors for an asking rent only for a ‘price inelastic tenant’. That article even states the average class A space in the area is $74/sqft

“Hah”!  You’re wrong.  If you want to ignore reality, then please do.

It costs billions of dollars to develop a new office tower in NY, and the rents reflect that.

Office asking rents at 55 Hudson Yards hover around $100 per square foot, roughly on par with the average of the Hudson Yards submarket. The new business core of the city has become the most expensive office destination in Manhattan, with office rents often exceeding $140 per square foot and reaching towards the $200s. 

 

More significantly, hopefully, Charlotte’s low costs will lure more businesses.
 

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