Atlanta seems to have become one of the most desirable cities for many of today’s buzziest companies. Just last week, supply chain tech startup Blume Global announced plans to expand its presence in the Peach State, following in the footsteps of Airbnb and Microsoft.
Now, it looks like Visa will be joining them. The finance giant recently unveiled plans to grow its presence here in Atlanta, which includes hiring about 1,000 new employees to fill up its new office in Midtown.
Expected to open in 2022, the 123,000-square-foot space will be located in the now-empty 1200 Peachtree Street building, and will mainly be used for Visa’s technology and client service teams. The goal is to maintain a “strong local presence” in Atlanta, Kim Lawrence, head of Visa’s U.S. market, said in a statement.
“It’s always great to see a world-renowned company like Visa capitalize on the exceptional pool of diverse talent in Georgia and choose to invest in our state,” Gov. Brian Kemp said in a statement. “Georgia is a growing hub for the fintech industry thanks in part to our strategic investment in workforce development initiatives, and I look forward to seeing the countless opportunities this significant expansion creates for hardworking Georgians.”
This news is coming at a time when many tech giants have been announcing new or expanding physical offices. Despite widespread return-to-office delays prompted by the delta variant, companies across the country have been buying up big spaces and promising even bigger hiring sprees. Just last month, Google bought up new offices in both NYC and Boulder, Colorado after announcing its nationwide plan to invest $7 billion in offices and data centers. Atlanta was included in that plan, with Google saying it wants to add thousands of new roles here in the coming years.
Like Google, Visa cited Atlanta’s diverse talent pool and entrepreneurial community as a key reason for this latest expansion.
“Atlanta represents an epicenter of financial technology expertise, resilient entrepreneurs, diverse perspectives and a vibrant community culture,” Michelle Gethers-Clark, Visa’s chief diversity officer, said in a statement. “We are committed to investing in and supporting the robust talent pool in Atlanta with rewarding professional development and growth opportunities.”
To that end, Visa recently launched She’s Next, Empowered by Visa, an initiative that focuses on empowering women and Black-owned small businesses, and has plans to partner with the Georgia FinTech Academy and other regional colleges to bolster training for diverse fintech experts.
“For decades, leadership in Georgia has placed a priority on supporting the university system and educating Georgians for the jobs of the future. Visa’s investment in Georgia is a testament to the strong pipeline of diverse talent we continue to produce in the state,” Georgia Department of Economic Development Commissioner Pat Wilson said in a statement. “In back-to-back years, Atlanta has been named the No. 1 tech hub in the U.S., and it is very exciting to see a company like Visa join our roster of world-renowned payment and fintech leaders that have chosen to invest and build the industry here.”
