LGBTQ+ neobank Daylight loses head of product Ethan Teng

US challenger bank Daylight, formerly known as Be Money, has lost its head of product as Ethan Teng announces his departure.

Teng joined the challenger brand in November 2020

Teng joined the firm as its second-ever employee in November 2020, when Daylight sat at the pre-seed level.

He claims to have helped the firm build and launch its app in under six months and helped Daylight secure its $5 million seed round based on his product’s strong metrics.

His departure from Daylight appears to have been anything but smooth.

“This was both one of the easiest and also one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make,” Teng writes on social media.

“I was extremely disappointed by the circumstances that led to this decision,” he continues.

“In the end, it came down to staying or choosing to double down on myself: my integrity and self worth. I chose to advocate for myself and I’m proud of that.”

Daylight’s founder is CEO Rob Curtis, a former head of product for engagement platform Native.FM.

Curtis also co-founded LGBTQ+ mental health tech firm Helsa, and spent time as managing director of dating site Gaydar.

FinTech Futures spoke with Curtis in 2020.

“Banks are geared towards a cis-gender, heterosexual offering,” he said, calling the LGBTQ+ market one with “a huge number of opportunities”.

He adds that LGBTQ+ consumers are developing “less of a victim mindset, and more of an empowerment mindset”.