By Alejandra Cancino
Tribune reporter
June 15, 2014
Illinois has pledged $12 million over 10 years to eBay in exchange for the creation of 360 jobs in downtown Chicago, Gov. Pat Quinn’s office said Friday.
EBay last year acquired Braintree, a Chicago payment processor for smartphones and tablets. Now eBay is agreeing to keep Braintree and its 140 jobs in the city, as well as create more jobs.
Braintree said it will move from 111 N. Canal St. to a 60,000-square-foot space in the Merchandise Mart and invest $24 million in the state. The company pledged to create 216 full-time jobs by 2016 and an additional 144 in 2017.
“EBay will join a burgeoning community of technology companies that was built in part by the governor’s visionary support for the 1871 digital hub and other ventures,” Adam Pollet, director of the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, said in a statement.