A fintech startup from Orlando that just raised $245 million is set to grow its presence in Chicago.
Stax, a payment processing tech firm, first opened a Chicago office with its 2021 acquisition of CardX, a Chicago startup that builds technology that helps businesses avoid credit card transaction fees by passing the cost on to the consumer.
Now under Stax, the CardX office at 401 N. Michigan Ave. has grown to 30 employees with plans to double that head count, according to Jonathan Razi, CardX's CEO and founder.
Razi said the company is hiring across sales, operations and its technology teams, and added that at least one Stax executive is relocating to Chicago from Orlando.
Stax's Chicago office is currently hybrid, allowing employees to work both remotely or from the office.
"To have a hub, and even if it's not five days a week, but a certain number of days a week, to white space and brainstorm — that balance had been good," Razi said.
Founded in 2013, CardX sells credit card terminals, virtual terminals and online payment portals to brands, which allows them to automatically require their customers to pay credit card fees when making a purchase. CardX raised more than $8 million in funding before it was acquired last year.
Stax, led by sibling co-founders Suneera Madhani and Sal Rehmetullah, has built an all-in-one payments API that lets companies mange payments, analyze data and simplify the customer experience. It has worked with 22,000 businesses and has enabled more than $23 billion in transactions.
Earlier this month Stax raised $245 million at a $1 billion valuation. The financing made it Orlando's first-ever homegrown unicorn tech company.
