Two of the 20 largest banks by assets in the U.S. are headquartered in Ohio — Fifth Third Bank in Cincinnati and Huntington Bancshares in Columbus. Cleveland-based KeyBank makes the top 50. But there is much more to Ohio’s financial services industry than that. Ohio is also a leading location for payment processors, insurance operations and fintech companies, among others.

Companies in these sectors could locate in better-known financial centers such as New York, San Francisco or Chicago. But they’re coming to Ohio for the talent — especially IT talent — and real estate they can procure at a fraction of the cost of other locations. Those are advantages for the employers. Their employees benefit from a cost of living they could never enjoy in an East or West Coast financial center.

 Access to IT talent is a top location criterion for financial companies evaluating sites for their operations. And they’re finding it in Ohio. A recent example is global payment processing provider Worldpay’s decision to reestablish its corporate headquarters in Cincinnati now that it has spun off from Fidelity National Information Services. In December 2023, the company said it plans to create more than 500 jobs in the region.

“Worldpay selecting Ohio for its headquarters showcases our position as a supportive environment for fintech innovation,” said Lt. Governor Jon Husted in a release. “Coupled with the Cincinnati Innovation District, this announcement allows Worldpay to tap into a rich talent pool of highly skilled professionals in finance, technology, and data analytics.”  

Worldpay’s CEO, Charles Drucker, said in the release that “Access to talent, quality of life, great educational institutions and the new direct flight from CVG Airport to London significantly contributed to the decision to make our corporate headquarters in Greater Cincinnati, connecting us to our customers worldwide.”

 Columbus Checks the Boxes
Also in December, Wells Fargo announced the Columbus area as the location for a new financial services technology center, citing its supply of IT workers and labor costs as being among its site criteria. It’s investing $3.25 million in a facility in Easton.

“There isn’t a more natural home for this chapter of our business than Columbus,” said Alan Varrasso, Wells Fargo’s chief information officer, in a statement. “Technology is moving rapidly, and we’ve carefully developed this project to meet the demands of the market. We’re looking forward to building out this new chapter of our business and making Ohio its home.”

Phoenix-based Western Alliance Bank also picked the Columbus region, Westerville, specifically, for its new technology center. The company explained in a release that “its IT division is establishing a workforce in new geographies, like Westerville, to enable acquisition and retention of world-class data analytics, cybersecurity, software development, finance and IT talent. The banking company currently has nearly 3,400 full-time employees across its offices and is adding 150 positions with this expansion into the Columbus Region.”

Why Ohio’s Capital?
“The robust talent pipeline, concentration of finance and technology companies and competitive business environment in the Columbus Region is the type of ecosystem we were looking for when scouting locations across the country,” said Tim Boothe, chief operating officer, in the release. “The community amenities, strong corporate presence, Class A office product and talent acquisition practices made Westerville the top contender for this project, which will ultimately be a catalyst for the bank’s growth nationwide.”

Meanwhile, Ohio has emerged as a leading state for fintech companies, with many growing rapidly in the state’s major metros. In early May, according to Built In, an online community for startups and technology companies, JPMorgan Chase, Pumpkin, Klarna, First Merchants Corporation, Upstart and Bread Financial all were hiring — and that’s just in Columbus. PNC Financial Services was hiring in Cleveland. And in Cincinnati, expanding fintech companies include First Financial Bank and Resurgent Capital Services.

How many of Ohio’s 6,200 tech industry graduates each year will launch their careers at Intel’s microchip factories in Licking County near Columbus? A lot, most likely. Many more will find their dream job at one of the many supplier companies that already have announced projects nearby.

In January 2022, Intel announced plans to invest more than $20 billion to construct two chip factories on a 1,000-acre site that has room for six more. When those are built, Intel will have invested $100 billion in the complex. In March 2024, Intel and the Department of Commerce signed a preliminary memorandum of terms whereby the chip giant would receive up to $8.5 billion of CHIPS and Science Act funding. Some of that would be earmarked for investments in other sites.

The initial phase will create 3,000 Intel jobs, but many more thousands will be created as the suppliers and partner operations come online. Four had indicated plans to establish operations in the region at the time Intel announced its Ohio plans — Applied Materials (equipment, services and software), LAM Research (wafer-fabrication equipment), Air Products (industrial gases and equipment) and Ultra Clean Technology (critical subsystems, cleaning and analytical systems).

“Intel’s announcement to build its latest manufacturing facility in Ohio is an exciting step forward for the U.S. semiconductor industry,” said Tim Archer, president and CEO of Lam Research, in an Intel release. “Ohio offers access to a diverse workforce, robust infrastructure and a great education system, and we are committed to growing our own capabilities in the region to support Intel’s success.”

Net tech employment in Ohio is nearly 269,000 workers — that’s s a combination of tech occupation jobs and tech industry jobs — according to the State of the Tech Workforce 2024 report from the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA). That’s 4.7% net employment as a percentage of Ohio’s overall workforce. The state is home to 21,098 technology business establishments, notes CompTIA, and the estimated direct economic impact of the technology sector is $33.7 billion.

Billions With a ‘B’
Speaking of billions of dollars, Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced in June 2023 a $7.8 billion investment to expand its data center operations in central Ohio. AWS already has data centers in Franklin and Licking Counties and employs close to 1,000 Ohioans.

 “Since 2015, AWS has invested more than $6 billion in Ohio while supporting thousands of local jobs,” noted Roger Wehner, director of economic development, in a statement. “This additional investment will bring new, well-paying jobs and will continue to boost the state’s gross domestic product each year.”

AWS estimates it has contributed more than $2 billion in economic benefit to Ohio already.

“Technology is evolving at breakneck speeds, as we have seen with the rapid growth of AI, and those states with the strongest cloud computing capabilities will have a competitive advantage for the jobs that rely on that computer infrastructure,” said Chris Berry, president of OhioX, a nonprofit membership organization that supports and connects Ohio’s innovation communities. “Since AWS’s arrival in 2016, Ohio has played a global role in powering all things technology — helping grow new startups, support our largest new enterprises, deliver innovation to government agencies, and help our businesses become more agile and innovate faster.”

Also in the billions of dollars, Google weighed in with a $1.7 billion capital investment announcement in August 2023. It will expand its data center in New Albany, which opened in 2019, and build new data centers in Lancaster and Columbus.

Making Capital Accessible
Ohio technology companies seeking a role in the state’s IT ecosystem got a boost in August 2023 with the launch of two funds designed to facilitate growth of homegrown tech companies. The Ohio Early Stage Focus Fund targets startup tech companies owned by women or minorities or are located in areas with limited access to venture capital. Investment managers can apply for $1 million to $5 million of the fund’s $36 million. The Ohio Venture Fund makes capital available to investment funds seeking to work with Ohio technology companies through Series A financing. Investors can apply for $5 million to $10 million of the fund’s $75 million.

“Venture capital isn’t just an investment; it’s a catalyst for innovation and a testament to the power of bold ideas here in Ohio,” said Lt. Governor Jon Husted at the launch of the two funds. “Venture capital fuels the dreams that redefine industries, empowering pioneers to shape the future we envision today. This will help pave the way for sustained technological advancement and further reinforce Ohio’s position as the Silicon Heartland.”