Deep Dive: PayMongo’s precarious predicament

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Once a rising fintech company that drew in investors such as Y Combinator and Stripe, Philippines-based PayMongo now finds itself in a precarious position.

Allegations of questionable spending and employee harassment from senior leaders cropped up a few months ago, leading Francis Plaza, the startup’s CEO, to go on voluntary leave.

PayMongo’s founders (L-R) chief technology officer Jaime Hing III, CEO Francis Plaza, and chief commercial officer Luis Sia / Photo credit: PayM ongo

What happened at PayMongo? And what can other fast-growing companies do to avoid the same fate? On this episode of Deep Dive, Tech in Asia journalist Melissa Goh discusses the events that led the company to its current state, how the incidents have affected PayMongo’s growth and performance, and the importance of strong corporate governance.

Timecodes:

00:00 – Intro music
00:47 – Today’s topic: PayMongo’s precarious predicament
01:21 – Early successes as a payment gateway
03:49 – When things started going wrong
05:11 – Allegations of employee harassment
08:42 – An inner circle of employees with fast-tracked careers
10:16 – Allegations of questionable spending
15:45 – Co-founder departures
18:39 – The impact on PayMongo’s growth
21:17 – How past and present employees feel about the company
23:28 – What other startups can learn from these incidents

Featured reporters:

• Melissa Goh, a Tech in Asia journalist based in Singapore

Essential reading:

• Fallout at PayMongo: alleged harassment by CEO, founder departures, growth woes
• PayMongo’s former CFO: ‘I never stole from any company’
• PayMongo CEO goes on ‘voluntary leave’
• What caused PayMongo’s crisis? Insiders tell us

Tech in Asia has launched a new podcast for World Mental Health Day. Vibe Check: Mental Health in the Startup World follows Tech in Asia writer and editor Winston Zhang on his quest to better manage his mental well-being through conversations with startup leaders and mental health professionals. Weekly episodes are available throughout the month of October on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts.