Aug. 08--Argon Credit, a startup that offers consumer loans, has chosen Chicago for its headquarters over Indianapolis and Austin, Texas.
The company, which plans to grow staffing fivefold to 150 full-time positions by the end of this year, cut the ribbon Friday morning for its headquarters at 200 W. Jackson Blvd. in the Loop. Previously it was based in Burr Ridge.
The personal lender said it chose Chicago due to availability of talent in the city and proximity to public transport for both staff and customers, said Raviv Wolfe, Argon's co-founder and chief executive.
Wolfe did not disclose if the company received incentives to settle in Chicago.
Argon, founded in 2014, said it competes with companies like Avant, Opportunity Financial and Alliant Credit Union. In May, Argon secured $75 million in debt funding from Princeton Alternative Funding, a credit hedge fund. Argon had earlier raised $5.05 million in three rounds of funding.
Argon declined to reveal its loan book size and number of customers. Gary Zumski, co-founder and chief risk officer, said default rates are less than 1percent of total portfolio.
The company uses data analytics to create a customer's credit score, allowing Argon to offer loans to prime and near-prime customers. Loan amounts range from $500 to $20,000; interest rates range between 25 percent and 95 percent, repayable up to 48 months.
Specific terms of personal loans vary depending on individual customer scores, Argon says on its website.
Argon said its other co-founder, Berj Arakelian, who served as chief operating officer, has left the company.
dherbling@tribpub.com
