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Financial and Professional Services: Missouri Meets Your Expansion Plans Down To A T

  • November 10, 2021

By Subash Alias, CEO, Missouri Partnership

As someone who works in the financial or professional services sector, you know better than anyone how tough the last couple of years have been.

Customer expectations, budgets, staff working patterns, and even the services you provide may have required a refocus as we have all done our best to survive the impacts of the pandemic.

Consolidation may have gotten your business through the worst of 2020. But you know that to build on your success, you must grow. That could mean expanding into new locations if the opportunity is right.

There are a host of things to consider when it comes to making such a move. In Missouri, we understand how complex that decision-making process can be.

We’ve been successfully attracting financial and professional services expansions for many years by offering lower taxes, a great and affordable quality of life, excellent professional networking opportunities, fewer regulations, and affordable office space.

We know your time is precious, so we’ve identified five key reasons Missouri is the best home for your business expansion. We call it our five Ts.

Track record

The financial and professional services industry is thriving in Missouri. We are home to several top financial services companies.

PC Magazine ranked Kansas City and St. Louis as top cities for launching tech careers, and they tied for fifth place in Marketwatch.com’s 2019 list of America’s Emerging Tech Hot Spots

Businesses that have recently expanded into the state have created more than 2,000 new jobs. We’d call that an achievement, especially at a time like this. Those we’ve welcomed include:

Advocado

Accenture Federal Services

Veterans United Home Loans

SwipeSum

Talent

More than 125,000 people, or nearly 5% of our workforce, are employed in core financial services occupations.

We’re home to more than 9% of U.S. reinsurance industry employees. Those companies headquartered or with a presence here account for 33% of U.S. reinsurance industry revenues.

And, as you’d expect from the tech hub of the Midwest, we have a vast pool of potential high-quality employees who are experts in the tech industry. Organizations like St Louis-headquartered non-profit LaunchCode, and Claim Academy – the top-ranked coding boot camp in the U.S. – as well as Missouri One Start are continually producing valuable tech talent at a rapid rate to match your needs.

Taxes

Missouri has the second-lowest corporate income tax rate in the U.S. at just 4 percent, and we have one of the most business-friendly tax structures in the country.

The only state to house two Federal Reserve Banks, we’re recognized as a leader in banking, investment, and financial services.

Time

Working from home has become a way of life for many tech industry professionals since the pandemic started. They’re leaving crowded cities and moving to “zoom towns” – places with more elbow room than New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, and similar urban areas.

In Missouri, we have plenty of “zoom towns” boasting affordable housing, high-speed internet, a welcoming atmosphere, and space to breathe.

You can also enjoy a better work-life balance here.

A work day may look like this:  Get online to put in a productive full day’s work, avoid the usual office distractions, then step outside to enjoy our beautiful outdoors, arts, culture, sports, and much more.

This means you can choose between an urban lifestyle or a rural one without impeding your highly successful career.

With the cost of living less than a third of that in San Francisco, Missouri is an extremely affordable place. Add in our close-knit communities, and the potential for you to enjoy a better life all around is real.

Testimonials

We know expanding into a new location is a complex decision, and advice from others might help. Listen to what other company executives are saying about the advantages of operating in Missouri and the warm welcome they received.

For many businesses, moving to Missouri has suited them down to a T. Are you ready to join us, too?

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