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Nicholas Financial Inc.

A consumer finance company that buys and services auto installment contracts from car dealerships, helping people finance new and used vehicles when traditional banks won't lend to them. Founded in 1986 by Peter Vosotas and based in Clearwater, Florida, it went public on the NASDAQ a year later. Vosotas, a Naval Academy graduate, rang the NASDAQ closing bell in 2010 to mark the company's 25th anniversary.