iPawn is a financial services company serving as an online lender and

reseller A reseller is a company or individual (merchant) that purchases goods or services with the intention of selling them rather than consuming or using them. This is usually done for profit (but can be done at a loss). One example can be found in the ...

for luxury goods. The company holds an online

pawn shop A pawnbroker is an individual or business (pawnshop or pawn shop) that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral. The items having been ''pawned'' to the broker are themselves called ''pledges'' or ...

license with headquarters in

Tyler, Texas Tyler is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the largest city and county seat of Smith County, Texas, Smith County. It is also the largest city in Northeast Texas. With a 2020 census population of 105,995, Tyler was the List of cities in Texa ...

. iPawn raised over $4 million in investment and has been cited as one of the leading companies in transitioning the pawn industry to the internet.

Services

iPawn provides two main services: # Non-recourse loans, otherwise known as pawn loans or asset-based loans, against valuables. # Buying and selling pre-owned valuables. Both lending and retail services are rendered to consumers and small businesses. iPawn provides its services against luxury items such as

jewelry Jewellery ( UK) or jewelry (U.S.) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the clothes. From a western ...

diamonds Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, b ...

gemstones A gemstone (also called a fine gem, jewel, precious stone, or semiprecious stone) is a piece of mineral crystal which, in cut and polished form, is used to make jewelry or other adornments. However, certain rocks (such as lapis lazuli, opal, an ...

precious metals Precious metals are rare, naturally occurring metallic chemical elements of high economic value. Chemically, the precious metals tend to be less reactive than most elements (see noble metal). They are usually ductile and have a high lustre. ...

and high-end

watches A watch is a portable timepiece intended to be carried or worn by a person. It is designed to keep a consistent movement despite the motions caused by the person's activities. A wristwatch is designed to be worn around the wrist, attached by ...

History

iPawn was established with the purpose of utilizing the latest technologies and internet for the veteran

pawnbroking A pawnbroker is an individual or business (pawnshop or pawn shop) that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral. The items having been ''pawned'' to the broker are themselves called ''pledges'' or ...

industry and to serve as a high-end pawn broker, delivering a simple, private way to get loans or sell high end goods through the internet. The idea came after learning about the high interest rates charged by pawn shops. The company launched its services to the public in July 2012. In March 2013 iPawn closed $4 million in its second round of financing from a group of angel investors led by Dr. Rafi Gridron. On May 12, 2014 iPawn announced the launch of a new brand called Worthy dealing only in after-market sales.

Brick & Mortar Pawn Shop Vs. Online Pawn Shop

While services provided by a brick and mortar pawn shop are similar to those provided by the online ones, there are few main differences: most notably, the means by which services are rendered. In a brick and mortar pawn shop, the process of receiving a loan or selling a valuable is done in person while in an online pawn shop the process is conducted through the internet and a courier of choice. The low inventory overhead results in the ability to provide higher value and lower interest rates. Another notable difference is the appraisal process of the submitted valuables: in a brick and mortar pawn shop, the appraisal is done in the local shop itself while in an online pawn shop, all items are shipped to a central facility where the appraisal is made.

Licenses and Accreditation

iPawn is a licensed pawn shop certified by the

Texas Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner The Texas Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner (“OCCC”) is a Texas state agency that regulates non-depository lenders in the state of Texas, which includes, among others, mortgage loan originators, vehicle sales finance companies, debt settl ...

(OCCC). Additionally, iPawn holds a precious dealer certificate, also granted by the Texas OCCC. iPawn is accredited by the

Better Business Bureau Better Business Bureau (BBB) is a private, 501(c)(6) nonprofit organization founded in 1912. BBB's self-described mission is to focus on advancing marketplace trust, consisting of 97 independently incorporated local BBB organizations in the Unit ...

Partnerships

iPawn has partnered in 2012 with

FedEx FedEx Corporation, formerly Federal Express Corporation and later FDX Corporation, is an American multinational conglomerate holding company focused on transportation, e-commerce and business services based in Memphis, Tennessee. The name "Fe ...

and ParcelPro to provide insured shipping services. iPawn also partnered with

Delta Lloyd Delta Lloyd Group was a Dutch insurer with operations in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. It consisted of Delta Lloyd, OHRA, ABN AMRO Verzekeringen and a few minor banks. The company was the sixth-largest insurer in the Netherlands, with a ...

in the same year to provide insurance to its facilities.

In the Media

In August 2013,

MSN MSN (meaning Microsoft Network) is a web portal and related collection of Internet services and apps for Windows and mobile devices, provided by Microsoft and launched on August 24, 1995, alongside the release of Windows 95. The Microsoft Net ...

Money Watch discussed how iPawn caters to affluent individuals and families that don't need money immediately but want a more sizable loan to help their cash flow. In an article published in July 2013, Reuters discusses the benefits of the purely online transactions carried out by iPawn, focusing on the desired discretion amidst the negative stigma of pawn shops. In May 2013, LearnVest brought into focus the story of a dentist who chose to use iPawn to sell family jewelry instead of a traditional bank loan.

Yahoo Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo! Inc. (2017–present), Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds ma ...

New Zealand published an article in March 2013 shedding light on the new world of online pawn shops and what to expect when utilizing their services.

South Coast Today ''The Standard-Times'' (and ''Sunday Standard-Times''), based in New Bedford, Massachusetts, is the largest of three daily newspapers covering the South Coast of Massachusetts, along with ''The Herald News'' of Fall River and ''Taunton Daily Gazet ...

Describes in an article published January 2013 how small business are turning to pawn shops for short-term loans, a better suited alternative to traditional bank loans. Early in 2013,

TIME Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...

Business and Finance discussed the reinvention of the pawn industry and its transition to the internet. KETK

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

Sits down with iPawn COO in December 2012 to talk about bringing the pawn shop online. In December 2012, NuWire Investor provided a detailed layout of the upscale online pawn industry and its move away from the originally bad stigma attached to pawn shops. Later in December 2012, The

New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...

wrote about the appeal of high-end online pawn shops from small business owners to wealthy celebrities.

References

{{reflist Pawn shops American companies established in 2011 Financial services companies established in 2011 Retail companies established in 2011 Internet properties established in 2011 2011 establishments in Texas