Source: CommonBond
David Klein set out for the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with a plan — just not an idea. He knew he wanted to launch a start-up but wasn't sure how he'd do it, who he'd partner with, or which industry to target.
Drawing on examples set for him decades earlier, Klein took aim at a target few could even see at the time.
His start-up wasn't exploring a new industry; it focused on one of the oldest businesses in finance — lending. Klein and his co-founders took the start-up that would become CommonBond into the budding financial technology industry to challenge other banks, as well as other online lenders. But it worked. Now, his company has 96 employees and is on track to surpass $1 billion in total loans funded later this year.
Klein, 35, talked to CNBC.com about the difficulty of launching into an established industry, the pain of rejection as a start-up founder, and pitching investors. (This Q&A has been edited for clarity.)
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