Uber presses pause on financial services play
Uber Money head Peter Hazlehurst is leaving the ride-hailing giant. His departure follows plans by Uber to focus on its ride and food delivery businesses.
Uber Money employees will now report to Uber’s vice president of technology, Peeyush Nahar
The firm’s plan to become a financial services company is therefore currently on pause.
Uber’s CEO Dara Khosrowshahi sent an email round on 25 June, seen by Bloomberg. It said the firm will “deprioritize” several of its finance-related projects.
These projects include its credit cards, a digital wallet and instant payments for drivers.
Hazlehurst announced his departure on Thursday in an email to his Uber Money team. Prior to Uber, he had worked at the likes of Nokia and Google, as well as various foodtech start-ups.
Khosrowshahi said he understood “Peter’s decision to pursue something more aligned with his passion and initial ambitions”.
Uber Money employees will now report to Uber’s vice president of technology, Peeyush Nahar.
The firm has seen to other high profile exits this year. These include Uber Eats’ CEO Jason Droege, and Uber’s chief technology officer, Thuan Pham.
Uber’s financial vision
Hazlehurst has led Uber’s financial strategy since 2018.
At the end of October last year, Uber announced its financial product line Uber Money. The line included services for both consumers and employed drivers.
It relaunched its Barclays-backed credit card, which offered consumers 5% in ‘Uber Cash’ and offered employed drivers ‘Instant Pay’. This meant drivers could get paid after each ride.
The firm also built an Uber Wallet for drivers and consumers.
For US drivers, their debit account and card already provided through Green Dot was updated. This saw it offer cash back on gas starting at 3% and going up to 6% for ‘Uber Pro’ drivers.
Hazlehurst announced the product play at the Money 20/20 conference in Las Vegas late last year.
He said the presentation was “without a doubt, the highlight of my career.” In an interview with Bloomberg, Hazelhurst added: “If we aren’t going crazy big on these products then I should get out of the way.”
Uber’s cuts so far during coronavirus
Uber has seen rides drop roughly 70% during the coronavirus pandemic.
Last month, the company made big cuts to its workforce. It decreased its employee count by 25%.
It has also withdrawn its presence in various food delivery markets and offloaded its electric bike division.
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