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Green Dot spat with shareholder prompts scathing letter to board

Harvest Capital Strategies, Green Dot's largest independent investor, decried a 'blatant attempt to entrench management, protect the disastrous status quo and avoid real, meaningful change.'

March 4, 2016

Harvest Capital Strategies LLC, the largest active independent shareholder of Green Dot Corp., has delivered a letter to the board of Green Dot lambasting the prepaid card provider for failing to take action to correct what it described as "poor operational execution, inconsistent financial results, and stock underperformance."

Following is an excerpt from the letter to the Green Dot:

On January 25, 2016, we issued a public letter to the Board and a comprehensive, 93-slide presentation on Green Dot titled "Proven Leadership is the Missing Ingredient for Long-Term Success." Our in-depth materials detailed Harvest's significant concerns regarding the continued mismanagement and value destruction at Green Dot under the direction of its current CEO, Steve Streit, and demanded immediate leadership change to drive shareholder value and address poor operational execution, inconsistent financial results, and stock underperformance.  We also elaborated on many of the proposals we previously discussed with the Board, which we believe would begin the process of rebuilding shareholder value that has been destroyed under Mr. Streit's leadership since 2010. Despite Harvest's offer to constructively re-engage with the Board, and your recurring boilerplate promise to "carefully review" our proposals, you have chosen to ignore the serious issues raised repeatedly by investors, and specifically, by Green Dot's largest active independent shareholder. Your silence on the main issues that have plagued the Company since 2010 is deafening and demonstrates to us that you cannot be trusted to protect the best interests of Green Dot shareholders.

...

This is not to say that we do not admire Mr. Streit's entrepreneurial vision in building Green Dot into the dominant brand in the GPR prepaid card industry, and we respect his transformation from radio disc jockey to public company CEO. However, at this more mature stage in Green Dot's corporate life, the Company requires a seasoned operator who can execute on a strategic plan, while communicating accurately and transparently with shareholders.

In case there is any doubt, please know Harvest is resolute and unwavering in its commitment to take any and all actions necessary to ensure meaningful, value-creating changes materialize for all Green Dot shareholders; we are determined to see this campaign through. 

The full text of the letter to the board outlining Harvest's issues with Streit, as well as its Jan. 25 letter and presentation are available to the public at FixGDot.com, a website established by the investor.