A growing Wilmington fintech firm moved into a new downtown office earlier this month.

Approve, a company that offers a financing and payment platform for equipment sellers, relocated its headquarters from The Cotton Exchange to the corner of Third and Grace streets in early July. The move will help the company accommodate a growing number of employees, according to a news release.

The company moved into a nearly 12,300-square-foot office on the top floor of 300 N. Third St. on July 5.  The move “underscores the company’s remarkable growth and its ongoing commitment to bringing innovative, problem-solving products and services to the B2B equipment market,” the release stated.

The firm began in 2014 under CEO Robert Preville as part of Kwipped, a tech-enabled online equipment marketplace. In 2020, officials moved the company’s operations from an initial location at 228 N. Front St. to The Cotton Exchange building at 379 N. Front St.

Last summer, Approve received $3 million in Series A funding with support from Cofounders Capital, Live Oak Ventures – the investment arm of Live Oak Bancshares – and VentureSouth. The funding allowed “further scaling of both product and workforce,” according to the company’s release.

By the end of 2023, the company had 24 employees, and with plans to add more, the firm began looking for new office space, the release stated. When the company moved into its new offices earlier this month, Approve had 50 employees across seven departments.

“While our expanded office space serves a functional need, it is also a representation of the hard work, innovative ideas and valuable fintech products our team has created,” Preville stated in the release. “I thank our employees for their dedication and relentless creativity.”

Preville and Rob Kaiser are part owners of Approve. Preville is also a part owner of the Greater Wilmington Business Journal along with Kaiser, who is the publisher of the Business Journal.

Keeping the company’s offices in Wilmington’s downtown played a key role in selecting a new space, Approve’s chief marketing officer Robin Salter wrote in the release.

“Remaining downtown was a major priority for us as we looked to expand. The excitement and energy of our company’s growth completely aligns with the excitement and energy of the evolution of downtown Wilmington,” Salter wrote.

Approve will host a ribbon-cutting at its new offices Aug. 13 at 11 a.m. The event will be sponsored by Wilmington Downtown Inc. and is set to be attended by members of the Wilmington City Council, Mayor Bill Saffo and other business and community leaders, according to the release.