Monzo founder leaves digital bank after mental health struggle
Monzo founder Tom Blomfield is to quit the digital bank, saying he struggled with his mental health after Covid brought normal life to a halt.
The 35-year-old said that he has not enjoyed working for Monzo in the two years since it transformed from a start-up into a major brand with almost 5m customers, and that the pandemic has made these feelings worse.
Mr Blomfeld moved from chief executive to the newly created role of president last May, standing down from the board at the same time. He is now giving up this role too.
Speaking to TechCrunch, he said: “Going through a pandemic, going through lockdown and the isolation involved in that has an impact on people’s mental health.
“I don’t think I was any different, so I was really struggling. I had a really, really supportive executive team around me and a really supportive set of investors on board and I was really grateful that when I put my hand up and said, ‘I need help,’ they were super receptive to that.”
There are growing fears about a wave of mental health problems caused by lockdowns and the Covid pandemic. On Wednesday Nick Wheeler, the boss of shirt firm Charles Tyrwhitt, said he is very concerned about rising depression and anxiety.
Mr Blomfield said that taking a startup to a business that could reach profitability and trade publicly were exciting challenges, but "just honestly not ones that I found that I was interested in or particularly good at".
He added that he has struggled during the coronavirus crisis due to enforced isolation and the shrinking economy.
During 2020 Monzo cut staff, shut its Las Vegas office after a highly publicised push to the US, and scrambled to raise emergency funds.
The bank is hoping to reach profitability this year. It has launched a metal card with an annual cost of £180 as part of efforts to overcome losses that rose to £113.8m in 2019.
