SoFi Technologies, Inc. (commonly known as SoFi) is an American online personal finance company and online bank. Based in San Francisco, SoFi provides financial products including student and auto loan refinancing, mortgages, personal loans, credit cards, investing, and banking through both mobile app and desktop interfaces.
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SoFi, short for Social Finance Inc., was founded in the summer of 2011 by Mike Cagney, Dan Macklin, James Finnigan, and Ian Brady, four students who met at the Stanford Graduate School of Business.
The founders hoped SoFi could provide more affordable options for those taking on debt to fund their education. The company’s inaugural loan program was a pilot at Stanford; for this pilot program, 40 alumni loaned about $2 million to approximately 100 students, for an average of $20,000 per student.
In September 2012, SoFi raised $77.2 million, led by Baseline Ventures, with participation from DCM and Renren. Additional investors included Ron Suber.
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SoFi has since entered into several agreements with several big banks.
As SoFi’s product offerings expanded to include mortgages, mortgage refinancing, and personal loans, the company moved away from an alumni-funded model to a non-traditional underwriting approach focused on lending to financially responsible individuals.
They also offer cash management (checking) accounts and an investment platform that includes brokerage and robo-advisor services.
Who are the biggest investors in SoFi?
| Stockholder | Stake | Shares owned |
|---|---|---|
| The Vanguard Group, Inc. | 7.26% | 67,323,304 |
| BlackRock Fund Advisors | 3.53% | 32,745,148 |
| Citadel Securities LLC | 1.61% | 14,928,455 |
| Geode Capital Management LLC | 1.25% | 11,567,145 |
How much money did SoFi cost?
Rams owner Stan Kroenke privately funded the construction of the stadium, which reportedly cost more than $5 billion to build. The 3.1 million square foot stadium is the largest in football, and its cost exemplifies that.
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