Stash’s CEO takes the helm as fintech matures from hypergrowth
Monday marked Stash’s first day as a banking and investment platform newly appointed CEO, Liza Landsman, in place, as the company prepares for a new growth phase and builds business-to-business product offerings.
Landsman, named to the role last week, was most recently a general partner at venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates and has held executive positions at Jet.com, E*Trade, BlackRock and Citi. She replaces co-founder Brandon Krieg, who will now lead business development at Stash. Co-founder Ed Robinson will remain president.
“My priority is to run the core business and develop it sustainably,” she said. “[We want to] making sure we’re in the best shape so that all options are on the table for us, whether it’s private financing, whether it’s an acquisition or whether it’s the public markets.”
The company is pursuing all options, despite earlier reports that suggested an IPO focus, Landsman said.
“She is the right person to lead Stash into the next phase,” War said in a statement. “Fresh leadership can be so valuable to a growing organization as it scales.”
Founded in 2015, Stash, which was valued at $1.4 billion during its Series G fundraising, recently passed $100 million in revenue, growing nearly 30% over the past 12 months. If the company continues on its path, it could break even in cash flow within a year, Landsman said.
The subscription-based platform offers banking, investing and crypto investing. Last September, Stash rolled out a core system in collaboration with Mastercard, Stride Bank, Marqeta, Mambu and Alloy. The company said the platform has more than 2 million active subscribers and approximately $3 billion in assets under management.
The rise of a B2B business
Stash’s leadership change will allow Krieg to lead efforts to develop a new B2B offering that Stash plans to offer through employers.
“Stash is developing a new business that helps the largest companies get started on their employees’ journey to financial wellness while providing an easy way to offer equity rewards,” Krieg said.
The employer Stash offering, which has yet to launch, will likely include a similar product line to its direct-to-consumer business — including investing and retirement — and may also include some customization, Landsman said.
“Employers continue to want to add greater benefits and access for their employees and also want to ensure they find better pathways to financial security,” she said. “Take, for example, our ability to take deposits and issue debit cards with ‘stock back’ [rewards]. … Think of the power that opens up for a large employer.”
Weathering an economic downturn
Stash was not immune to the wave of layoffs that hit the fintech industry in recent months. The company cut 16% of its workforce last year, bringing its workforce to around 420 employees. Despite challenging financial conditions, Landsman said she believes the company is well positioned for growth.
“We’re heavily capitalized and we’ve done a lot of heavy lifting to create the infrastructure and technology platform we need … to help us manage through these challenging macros,” she said. “[We plan to] focus on the basics, provide a good consumer experience and keep our promises.”
No further reductions are planned, said Landsman, who noted that the company plans to bring in a couple of new senior hires and introduce some organizational changes.
Stash has also provided guidance to clients on how to best weather tough financial times, including through “dives and limitations in the product that are designed to push you toward consistently healthy and sustainable value creation,” she said.
Entering maturity
Stash’s moves are typical of a startup entering a new phase of growth, and part of a strategy to steer through the current economic climate, analysts said.
“As tech startups age and transition from hyper-growth mode to mature businesses, leadership transitions are relatively common,” said fintech analyst Grant Easterbrook. “In the face of the broader retrenchment of the tech industry – where venture capital funding is scarcer and investors are more focused on profitability and controlling costs – a leadership transition to someone better positioned for the next phase of Stash’s life makes sense.”
Stash’s 2 million strong subscriber base is a foundation for further monetization efforts, said Ron Shevlin, head of research at Cornerstone advisors. The challenge is to ensure that these customers continue to grow their assets and take up new products.
“It comes down to the quality of that customer base,” Shevlin said. “[It] can only point to the opportunity to make money and expand. I think that’s what a lot of these business-to-consumer fintechs have to do.”
Landsman suggests that her expertise in working with financial companies of various sizes ensures that she is prepared to take on the challenge.
“The one thing I would say I really take away from my time working in large financial services organizations is understanding the critical need to provide a product platform and service offering that is truly tailored to the middle and low-income segments of the country,” she said . “Many of the companies that are amazing and have amazing products and services are really tailored and oriented around serving the affluent masses.”
