Founders: Ian Brady, Mike Cagney, James Finnigan, Dan Macklin
CEO:Â Anthony Noto
Launched:Â 2011
Headquarters:Â San Francisco
Funding:Â $2.3 billion
Valuation:Â $4.8 billion
Industry:Â Banks, financial institutions
Previous appearances on Disruptor 50 List: 5 (No. 26 in 2019)
The coronavirus pandemic has stopped many industries in their tracks but has accelerated the need for others. Count digital finance in the latter category, as consumers have lost access to physical banks. That shift has been benefiting SoFi. In April the San Francisco-based personal finance company bought Galileo, a payments software company, for $1.2 billion. The deal will help SoFi capitalize on the fact that the need for mobile financial services is booming now and will likely continue long after the pandemic ends.
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SoFi launched in 2011 as a student loan financing company for millennials, but quickly expanded to personal and mortgage loans, refinances and wealth management services. Last year it expanded yet again by offering a complete suite of financial products called Money, Invest, and Insurance aimed at the general public. It now offers stocks, ETFs — including a first-of-its-kind gig economy ETF. It also introduced a fractional share trading product called Stock Bits.
CEO Anthony Noto says the goal is for SoFi to become the central financial hub for members to manage and grow their money. The company claims to have 1 million members and has made $45 billion in loans to date. SoFi has raised $2.3 billion in funding and is valued at around $4.8 billion. In response to the pandemic, it launched a small business lending program through Lantern to fund over $50 million in loans under the Payroll Protection Program. It also launched a Covid-19 personal finance resource center for members to help them navigate through the crisis.
