Dan Henry, CEO of Green Dot - Modern Banking for Everyone
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In this episode, my guest is Dan Henry, CEO of Green Dot (NYSE: GDOT), a 20-year-old company focused on making modern banking and money movement accessible for everyone. Green Dot also recently launched Go2Bank a digital bank for Americans living paycheck to paycheck.
GreenDot is far from being Dan’s first rodeo. In fact, this is the third publicly listed company he’s led in the last three decades. He previously served as CEO of Netspend, a leading provider of prepaid debit cards, and led the company through its IPO and eventual sale to TSYS Corporation. And prior to Netspend, he co-founded Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ: EEFT), a leader in secure electronic financial transaction processing, where he served as President and COO from 1994 through 2006.
We talked about:
Dan’s entrepreneurial and international fintech journey since the early 90s
What motivates him and why entrepreneurs are his favorite type of folks
Two fundamental things he believes make a business successful
The evolution of fintech
Why he came out of retirement to lead Green Dot
What led him to launch Go2Bank in January 2021 and a bit about their go-to-market strategy
Reflections for aspiring founders
And a whole lot more!
Dan’s entrepreneurial fintech journey started in Budapest, Hungary back in 1993. As the country was transitioning from a cash-based economy as a satellite state of the Communist Soviet Union to an independent nation, Dan and his business partner, Michael J. Brown, realized there were only two ATM machines in all of Hungary and a vastly underserved market of 10 million people. Seeing the opportunity, he quit his job, took all his savings, raised some money, and moved over to Budapest to figure out how to build an off-premise ATM network. After finding local success, they expanded to Poland, then Germany, and then to over a dozen European countries as well as India and China. By 2006, Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ: EEFT) was a resounding success (it still is) but Dan decided he wanted a change after his 13-year run.
Two years after leaving Euronet, Mr. Henry was recruited as CEO to NetSpend, a leading provider of prepaid debit cards. Over the next six years, he led the company through its IPO and steered a successful sale of NetSpend to TSYS Corporation (now Global Payments Inc.). By 2014 Dan left the company convinced he could now retire from the corporate world - little did he know Green Dot would come knocking a few years later.
Leading Green Dot
“I can tell you I have failed miserably twice at retirement, just not something I can do right now (...) but the opportunity at Green Dot was just too exciting to pass up.”
Founded by Steve Streit in 1999 as a prepaid debit card for teenagers to shop online, Green Dot is now a $3 billion financial giant with a collection of assets spanning across cards, payments, and banking, serving some of the largest companies in the world. Mr. Henry joined Green Dot in March of 2020 as part of a strategic overhaul in which he aims to rely less on promotional marketing of its legacy products and more on Green Dot’s banking license to drive growth. In fact, we talked just a few weeks before the launch of Go2Bank, a digital bank Green Dot has just rolled out to serve specifically the low-to-moderate income consumer. Go2Bank is Dan’s signature venture and he is clearly excited about leveraging the company’s existing capabilities and network to bring Go2Bank to consumers and make a difference in the lives of the underbanked population of the US. In Dan’s own words, ”Nobody is really walking in the shoes of a low-to-moderate income consumer and saying what does this consumer need? What they need is not a bank account. They need a transaction tool that gives them access to their wages. A tool that gives them information. What their balances are. Gives them a little bit of extra help to get them through the week to be able to buy gas and groceries. Gives them some credit. Gives them the ability to build their credit score. Answers the phone when they call and they have a serious issue. And doesn't treat them like - okay, well you guys are kind of nice to have, but I'm really looking for the folks making $75,000 a year or more.”
Reflections for aspiring founders
Between his time at NetSpend and Green Dot, Dan admits he became an accidental Venture Capitalist. Not only has he built companies and worked with entrepreneurs, but he has also invested in several founders. Mr. Henry tells us he first looks to understand what problem is an entrepreneur trying to solve, but more importantly, why are they trying to solve it?Why that problem? He thinks it is crucial to understand what is it about the specific founding team and their life experience that motivates them to solve that problem. And, ultimately, it all comes down to passion and having the passion to solve the specific problem. As Dan puts it, ”If you don't have the passion, if you don't have something inside that's driving you to do this, whatever this is, you might have moderate amount of success, but you're not going to have wild success (...) If you don't have that love for what you're doing, it's so easy just to pack up your tent and go home.”
Moment Motors
When asked about some of his hobbies, Dan mentioned his involvement with an amazing small company called Moment Motors. They electrify classic cars and classic replicas like the Porsche Speedster, Porsche Spyder, Deloreans, Ford Cobras, and many others.
“We pull the gas engines out and we put in electric motors and Tesla batteries.”
You can find them in Austin, TX or follow them here on Instagram.
Full interview → Spotify | Soundcloud | Apple
Dan Henry
Dan Henry joined Green Dot as CEO in early 2020 with a vision to maximize the potential of the 20-year-old digital bank and make modern, affordable banking and payments accessible to everyone. He previously served as CEO of Netspend, a leading provider of prepaid debit cards for personal and commercial use, from 2008 to 2014. In 2010, Mr. Henry led Netspend through its initial public offering, and in July 2013 completed an all-cash sale of the company to TSYS Corporation, valued at $1.4 billion USD. Prior to Netspend, Mr. Henry co-founded Euronet Worldwide (NASDAQ: EEFT), a leader in secure electronic financial transaction processing, where he served as President and Chief Operations Officer from 1994 through 2006, and remained on the company’s Board until 2008. Mr. Henry has been Chairman of Paysign Inc (NASDAQ: PAYS), a vertically integrated provider of innovative prepaid card programs, digital banking and processing services for corporate, consumer and government application, since 2018. He also served as a director of The Brink’s Company (NYSE:BCO) from 2017 through early 2020.
About Green Dot
Green Dot (NYSE: GDOT) is a financial technology and registered bank holding company focused on making modern banking and money movement accessible for all. Our proprietary technology enables faster, more efficient electronic payments and money management, powering intuitive and seamless ways for people to spend, send, control and save their money. Through our retail and direct bank, we offer a suite of financial products to consumers and businesses including debit, prepaid, checking, credit and payroll cards, as well as robust money processing services, tax refunds, cash deposits and disbursements.
GO2bank is FDIC-insured, so your money is protected up to the maximum allowable limit. And GO2bank is a brand of Green Dot Corporation, founded in 1999 and headquartered in Pasadena, CA. Green Dot has served more than 33 million consumers directly over the last 20 years and many more through our banking partners.
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