Goldman MD who went fintech in 2016 only made millions
Making the jump to fintech can be a big risk compared to a more groomed job as a CEO at Goldman Sachs. But it might be worth it. For James Blackham, the former head of digital structuring at Goldman Sachs, leaving to become a fintech entrepreneur just made him a lot of money.
Blackham, who helped launch Goldman’s Marquee system, left the firm after more than 11 years in 2016 to co-found ‘By Miles’, an insurance company where he is managing director. Speaking to us in 2017, he said he and his CTO — a former Goldman developer — “took the big data and analytics skills we learned at Goldman Sachs and applied them to auto insurance to make it fairer for the consumer.”
By Miles’ last valuation came in 2020, after it raised $15 million in Series B funding. Dealroom then estimated the fintech to be worth between $79m and $119m.
Last week By Miles was bought by Direct Line Group for an undisclosed fee. Companies house declared Blackham as one of two people who had “significant influence or control” over the company before the takeover. Direct Line now owns 75% of the shares in the company.
If the valuation remains unchanged, 25% of those shares will be worth at least $19.75 million and no more than $29.75 million.
It is unclear exactly how many shares Blackham sold, nor is it clear whether he still owns any, but prior to the creation of the By Miles Group company, he owned between 25% and 50% of the shares in the original company, By Miles Ltd . when it was incorporated in 2015.
Given that most fintechs have had their valuations reduced this year, it can be assumed that the actual amount Blackham earned is slightly below 2020 levels, but it’s still very likely that leaving Goldman Sachs has netted him a significant sum. He wrote on social media that he was “pleased”.
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