Title
Business Investment Grant for Robinhood Markets, Inc.
Action
Action:
Approve the city's Business Investment Grant to Robinhood Markets, Inc. for a not to exceed amount of $157,726 over five years.
Body
Staff Resource(s):
Tracy Dodson, City Manager's Office
Fran West, Economic Development
Explanation
* Robinhood Markets, Inc. (Robinhood), a fintech company headquartered in Menlo Park, CA, provides easy-to-use and low-cost financial products and services for clients including the purchase and sale of equities, options, and cryptocurrencies to retail investors via commission-free trading.
* On March 30, 2021, Robinhood announced it would locate a customer experience and account operations center in Charlotte.
* Robinhood has committed to a capital investment of $11,780,000 and creation of 389 jobs to be hired over five years with an average wage of $76,450.
* In addition to the Business Investment Grant (BIG), the State of North Carolina also approved a Job Development Investment Grant in the amount of $3,006,000 and $544,600 in community college training funds.
* A public hearing on the Robinhood BIG was held on June 14, 2021. No comments were received from the public.
Business Investment Grant
* The general terms and conditions of this grant include:
* Actual grant payments are based on the value of the investment as appraised by the Mecklenburg County Tax Office.
* Property taxes due from Robinhood must be paid before a grant payment is made.
* If Robinhood removes the investment from Charlotte during the grant term, it shall pay back 100 percent of the investment grant paid to date.
* If Robinhood moves the investment from Charlotte within five years of the end of the Business Investment Program (BIP) grant term, a portion of the grant must be repaid as follows:
* Within one year of the end of the BIP Term - 90 percent of grant payments
* Within two years of the end of the BIP Term - 75 percent of grant payments
* Within three years of the end ...
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