Founders of Gathering Spot file lawsuit against neobank Greenwood
In a series of significant moves, Greenwood, the digital banking platform, has made several acquisitions and experienced changes in its leadership.
Mike McCloskey, a seasoned financial executive, has joined Greenwood as its new Chief Financial Officer. This appointment comes as T'Keel Petersen, co-founder of The Gathering Spot (TGS) and a founding member of TGS's Los Angeles location, announced his departure from Greenwood at the end of the month. It's worth noting that Van Lathan, another founding member of TGS's Los Angeles location, highlighted on Instagram that Petersen is Black and McCloskey is White.
Greenwood's acquisitions include fellow affinity neobank Kinly, music festival A3C, professional networking platform Valence, and The Gathering Spot. The acquisition of TGS was announced in May, and Greenwood has already paid over $40 million in cash, stock, and assumed liabilities for the deal.
The acquisitions have expanded Greenwood's platform offerings beyond financial services to include entertainment and career development geared toward Black and Brown communities. The combined entity now serves a community of over a million people, creating the largest combined fintech and community platform for Blacks and minorities.
However, these acquisitions are not related to the ongoing lawsuit between Greenwood, T'Keel Petersen, and Ryan Wilson, the founders of The Gathering Spot. The lawsuit, filed in February 2023, alleges Greenwood violated the purchase agreement and withheld payments, amounting to approximately $5 million in earn-out payments. Greenwood denies the allegations and responded with a countersuit in June 2023, claiming false and misleading statements were made by Wilson and Petersen.
It's important to note that the acquisitions by Greenwood have not been specified as including purchase licensing rights. Greenwood did not immediately respond to a request for comment from the website regarding this matter.
The Instagram post by TGS clarified that Mike joining Greenwood and TK departing TGS are unaffiliated and not a matter of replacement. As for The Gathering Spot, co-founded by Petersen and Wilson in 2016, its Los Angeles location lost over $2 million last year, and the company as a whole is not profitable.
The departures and acquisitions mark a new chapter for both Greenwood and The Gathering Spot. As the story unfolds, it will be interesting to see how these changes impact the future of these innovative platforms.
