What EZCorp does

EZCorp, Inc. (NASDAQ: EZPW) is a publicly traded specialty consumer finance company headquartered in Austin, Texas, that operates the largest pawn lending and pre-owned merchandise retail platform in the Americas. Founded in 1989 by Phillip E. Cohen (who remains Executive Chairman and controlling shareholder via a dual-class structure), the company generated $1.3 billion in FY2025 revenue and $446.9 million in Q2 FY2026 (up 46% year-over-year), serving cash- and credit-constrained consumers who need short-term liquidity or affordable pre-owned goods.

The company's core products are non-recourse pawn loans collateralized by personal property (gold, diamond jewelry, electronics, tools, musical instruments, sporting goods, and firearms) and the retail sale of forfeited or directly purchased pre-owned merchandise at prices up to 70% off retail. Revenue is generated through three streams: (i) usage-based pawn service charges on outstanding loans, (ii) one-time merchandise sales from both loan redemptions not occurring (forfeited collateral) and direct customer purchases, and (iii) jewelry scrap sales whose gross margins expanded from 22% to 38% on elevated gold prices. The underlying operating technology is a pawn transaction processing and collateral management platform supporting 1,506 stores across 16 countries under multiple regional brands including EZPAWN, Value Pawn & Jewelry, Empeño Fácil, Guateprenda, La Familia Pawn & Jewelry, CashWiz, and Cash Converters.

The go-to-market motion is exclusively physical retail — customers visit stores to obtain loans, sell items, or purchase merchandise — with customer acquisition driven by store-level presence, local marketing, and word-of-mouth. The business is segmented into U.S. Pawn (559 stores), Latin America Pawn (840 stores), and Simple Management Group/SMG (107 stores acquired in January 2026). Since CEO Lachie Given's appointment in March 2022, the company has pursued an aggressive inorganic growth strategy, completing multiple acquisitions including Founders One/SMG, El Bufalo Pawn (12 Texas stores), 32 stores in Guatemala, and a 53-store auto pawn business in Mexico, while maintaining a $469.5 million cash position funded in part by a March 2025 $300 million senior notes offering.

Name

EZCorp

Legal name

EZCORP, Inc.

Website

https://ezcorp.com

Company type

Public

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1,001–5,000 employees

Short description

EZCorp is a publicly traded specialty consumer finance company that operates 1,506 pawn lending and pre-owned merchandise retail stores across 16 countries in the Americas, serving cash- and credit-constrained consumers with short-term collateralized loans and discounted used goods under brands such as EZPAWN, Value Pawn & Jewelry, and Empeño Fácil.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Consumer Pawn Lending and Pre-Owned Retail

NAICS

Jewelry Retailers (458310), Jewelry, Watch, Precious Stone, and Precious Metal Merchant Wholesalers (423940)

SIC

Retail-Jewelry Stores (5944), Wholesale-Jewelry, Watches, Precious Stones & Metals (5094)

akta.pro primary industry

Traditional Pawn Loans (Pawnbrokers) (FSAKALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Pawn & Collateral-based Jewelry Retail (CRAKAGAL), Electronics & Tools Collateral Loans (FSAKALAD)

Keywords

• Pawn loans
• Collateral lending
• Consumer credit services
• Pre-owned merchandise
• Short-term cash loans

Headquarters

HQ city

Austin

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Pawn Service Charges (PSC): Non-recourse pawn loans collateralized by personal property (gold, jewelry, electronics, tools, etc.) generate pawn service charges as the primary revenue stream. Customers receive short-term cash loans secured by collateral, paying service fees for the credit extended.
2. Merchandise Sales: Sale of pre-owned merchandise including collateral forfeited from pawn lending operations and used items purchased from customers. Customers can sell items directly for instant cash. The company offers jewelry, electronics, tools, sporting goods, musical instruments, handbags, and shoes at prices up to 70% off retail.
3. Jewelry Scrap Sales: Gold and diamond jewelry purchased from customers or forfeited from pawn loans is sold as scrap material. Elevated gold prices significantly boost margins on jewelry scrap sales, which increased dramatically from 22% to 38% margin.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

EZCorp provides non-recourse pawn loans collateralized by personal property such as gold, diamond jewelry, electronics, computers, musical instruments, tools, video games, and firearms (US only), delivered through 1,506 physical storefronts in the United States and Latin America. Customers can also sell items directly to EZCorp for instant cash or purchase pre-owned and recycled merchandise at up to 70% off retail prices. The company operates three segments — U.S. Pawn, Latin America Pawn, and SMG — under brand families including EZPAWN, Value Pawn & Jewelry, Empeño Fácil, Guateprenda, Cash Converters, La Familia Pawn and Jewelry, and CashWiz.

Product overview

EZCorp operates a multi-brand pawn platform offering short-term cash solutions through pawn loans collateralized by personal property, alongside retail sales of pre-owned and recycled merchandise. The company operates three reportable segments: U.S. Pawn (559 stores under EZPAWN, Value Pawn & Jewelry, and other brands), Latin America Pawn (840 stores under Empeño Fácil, Guateprenda, and regional brands), and SMG (107 stores acquired in 2026). The platform serves cash-constrained consumers seeking immediate liquidity and budget-conscious shoppers purchasing pre-owned goods, with merchandise categories spanning jewelry, electronics, tools, sporting goods, and musical instruments.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Pawn Loans Non-recourse pawn loans collateralized by personal property including gold, diamond jewelry, electronics, computers, musical instruments, tools, video games, and firearms (US only). Provides fast, convenient, and confidential short-term cash access for consumers who lack traditional banking credit. Pawn service charges (fees) are the primary revenue stream from this offering.
• Pre-owned Merchandise Sales Sale of pre-owned and recycled merchandise including gold, jewelry, electronics, tools, sporting goods, luxury handbags, shoes, musical equipment, and more. Items come from collateral forfeited through pawn lending and items purchased directly from customers. Consumers can save up to 70% off regular retail prices.
• Gold and Jewelry Purchase EZCorp buys quality used items directly from customers, including gold and diamond jewelry, converting valuables into instant cash. This offering serves customers who do not want a pawn loan redemption option. Inventory also feeds the jewelry scrap sales channel, where margins expanded from 22% to 38% amid elevated gold prices.

Quantifiable outcome

• Record pawn loans outstanding of $342.1 million through Q2 2026, representing 31% year-over-year increase
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Founders One, LLCcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 January 2026EZCorp acquired an 87.7% controlling interest in Founders One, LLC on January 2, 2026. Founders operates 105 pawn stores across the U.S. and 11 additional countries under the La Familia Pawn and Jewelry and CashWiz brands, through its subsidiary Simple Management Group (SMG). The transaction was valued at approximately $55 million in equity conversion plus $9.4 million cash contribution.
• Simple Management Group, Inc. (SMG)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 2 January 2026SMG operates 105 pawn stores under the La Familia Pawn and Jewelry and CashWiz brands across 12 countries. Following EZCorp's Founders One acquisition, SMG is now 93% owned by EZCorp. SMG generated $127 million in revenue and $66 million in gross profit for the nine months ended September 30, 2025.
• Cash Converters International Limited (ASX: CCV)minorOthersCash Converters International Limited is an affiliate company in which EZCorp holds an equity method investment. EZCorp CEO Lachie Given serves on the board of Cash Converters. The company operates pawn and buy/sell/swap stores internationally.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• FirstCash Holdings: Largest publicly traded pawn operator in the U.S. and Latin America with over 3,000 stores. Directly competes with EZCorp in pawn lending and pre-owned retail across overlapping U.S. states and Mexico/LatAm geographies.
• Cash Converters International: Australian-listed pawn and second-hand goods retailer with global store network. EZCorp holds an equity-method investment and shares overlapping product categories (pawn loans, pre-owned retail) and operational geography.

Broad incumbents

• World Acceptance Corporation: Consumer finance company providing small installment loans to underbanked consumers. Comparable in targeting cash-constrained demographics with short-term credit products, though its model is unsecured installment lending rather than pawn.
• PROG Holdings: Lease-to-own provider (Progressive Leasing, Vive Financial) serving non-prime consumers. Comparable in offering credit-constrained consumers access to merchandise purchases, overlapping in demographic and retail-merchandise dynamics.
• Upbound Group: Parent of Rent-A-Center, providing rent-to-own and lease-to-own solutions to underbanked consumers. Overlaps with EZCorp in serving cash-constrained buyers seeking affordable access to durable goods.
• OneMain Holdings: Largest U.S. installment lender to non-prime consumers. Comparable in serving credit-constrained demographics seeking short-to-medium term consumer loans, though products are unsecured and geographies differ.
• goeasy Ltd. Canadian specialty consumer lender and lease-to-own provider serving non-prime borrowers. Comparable in offering consumer loans and durable goods financing to underbanked customers, with overlapping business model mechanics.

Emerging players

• Enova International: Online specialty lender serving non-prime consumers and small businesses. Comparable in serving cash-constrained borrowers with short-term credit, but operating digitally rather than through physical pawn locations.
• Regional Management Corp. Consumer finance company originating installment loans through a U.S. branch network. Comparable in physical-store consumer credit model and similar target customer base, though smaller scale and focused on unsecured lending.
• CURO Group Holdings: Specialty consumer finance company offering installment and line-of-credit products to underbanked consumers. Comparable demographic and product overlap, though primarily operating digitally rather than through pawn retail locations.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/EZPAWN
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ezcorp
• Instagraminstagram.com/ezcorp_official

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles13 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A3 records

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about EZCorp