The Employment Court lawsuit has scrutinized Kuda Technologies, one of Africa’s fastest-growing digital banks, for allegations of workplace discrimination, harassment and illegal dismissal. Rosemary Hewat, former group chief public officer (CPO) of Kuda, has filed a complaint denounced the company and its CEO Babatunde Ogundeyi for sex discrimination, victimization and unfair dismissal.
According to the filing, Hewat had been in a senior role for nearly three years, claiming that he expelled her in April 2024 for a long time. She filed a lawsuit in the UK Employment Court, and TechCrunch reviewed the legal documents.
The complaint reveals an internal dispute at KUDA, which provides digital banking services to millions of customers in Nigeria and the UK. It also raises wider concerns about workplace culture, leadership accountability and gender equality in the African technology industry.
When contacted for comment, Hiwatt refused to discuss the case, citing ongoing legal proceedings. The full hearing is set for October.
“It is accurate to see Rosemary Hewat, a former employee of Kuda Technologies Limited UK, filed an employment court claim against the company,” a Kuda spokesperson said in his response to TechCrunch. “As this is a legal issue, we cannot provide additional information at this time. We would like to comment on the issue of this nature involving current or former employees in line with respect for current policies and privacy. I won’t.
Hired in August 2021, Hewat managed global HR operations from Kuda’s UK office. According to the submission, she witnessed and experienced discriminatory behavior that contradicted Kuda’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies. She claims that CEO Ogundeyi and other senior leaders intentionally undermined her role and nurtured a culture of misogyny and blackmail.
For example, the filing describes the retreat of a company in Lagos, Nigeria in December 2023. Hewat claims that Ogundeyi publicly condemned the two female employees following the filing. He called them “low class,” accusing them of lacking “quality and luxury,” and accusing them of shedding tears. Hiwatt claims the case is part of a broader pattern that made Kuda’s workplace “intimidating, hostile, degraded, humiliated and aggressive” for her and other women, according to the filing. .
The complaint also explains how Ogundyei, who is allegedly seen herself within Kuda. Hiwat claims that the employee repeatedly told her that he saw him as “God” and was afraid to approach him.
Hewat says the senior management has removed her from the critical strategy discussion, according to the submission. In January 2023, then Coo Pavel Khristolubov reportedly removed her from senior management despite her team handling resource decisions on the agenda. When she questioned her exclusion, Ogundii reportedly told her that the meeting was about product strategies and made her presence unnecessary. Shortly afterwards, her team was pressured to implement resource decisions from the very meeting.
Fristolbov is said to have since circumvented Hiwato’s authority by working directly with team members. When she expressed concern to Ogundeyi and CTO Mutairu Mustapha, Ogundeyi reportedly dismissed them. In a performance review, Ogundeyi allegedly told her “I’ll spend the next six months to make Pavel fall in love with you.” Hiwatt claims that this has further exacerbated the toxic work environment and interfered with her ability to play her role.
By October 2023, Hewat officially proposed a review of the internal systems to address the issue with Khristolubov. Instead of being involved in her concerns, Ogundeyi is said to have threatened her with her fire.
Stock compensation dispute
At the heart of Hewat’s complaints are unresolved disputes over employee stock options (ESOP). When she joined Kuda, she claims the company provided hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of ESOP stock at Series A valuations. However, despite multiple requests, she has never received any formal documents.
Kuda eventually issued an ESOP grant in April 2022, which was based on a Series B rating, raising the stock price and reducing the stock value with each filing. She later claims that then-CFO Stephen Bastian discovered that he managed to revert his shares to Series A prices. When Hewat raised concerns, Ogundeyi was said to have rejected her request, stating that Bastian’s role was “more important” than her.
In December 2023, Hewat officially documented concerns about stock allocation (and wage disparities) with each filing. She warned Kuda that failure to address the issue could constitute sex discrimination under UK employment law. In response, Ogundeyi rejected her claim, claiming she was not contractually qualified for Series A shares.
“As a company, please note that you do not provide communications (emails, letters, etc.) to demonstrate your claim. I think that’s because there is no evidence.” “Your The terms of employment and options grants are as set out in writing to you. Even if someone suggests you that you might receive something different (it is not acceptable), it is contractually I won’t build a qualification.”
Despite Ogundeyi’s assurance that Kuda would investigate her complaints, no formal investigation was made according to the submission. Hewat argues that Ogundeyi refused to mediate, personally dealing with internal investigations into his own actions, and ultimately controlled his favor. She argues that this violated Kuda’s complaint policy and ACAS’s code of practice regarding workplace dispute resolution.
Hewat claims that attempts to resolve concerns in January 2024 worsened his relationship with his former boss. She claims he put pressure on her to withdraw her discrimination complaints, but she refused.
Sudden dismissal and retaliation
In February 2024, Kuda suddenly fired London-based Hewat while traveling to Lagos for an Executive Committee (Exco) retreat. She had just attended her sister’s follow-up service ceremony and was on a layover when Ogundyei insisted on the video call. Despite letting him know about her situation, Hiwato claims he fired her during the conversation.
Kuda is said to have banned Hiwat from the retreat she jumped in. When she later met Ogundeyi in person, he cited Nigeria’s economic instability and cost-cutting measures as reasons for his firing.
“I’m making some serious changes. Changes definitely need to happen… a lot of personality conflicts and you’re definitely at that thickness,” Ogundeyi told her. . He also said, “In the UK, you’re probably low wages, but for Kuda you’re expensive… What does Rosie have to do to justify her salary? It’s mostly It’s from FX.”
According to the filing, Ogundeyi alleged that her dismissal was not related to Hewat’s discrimination complaints, stock allocations, or Khristolubov. However, Hiwatt claims that he still nurtured a relationship with Christolbov. (Khristolubov eventually left Kuda in June 2024, two months after Hewat.)
Hewat claims that Kuda provided the same exit conditions as Khristolubov, but he was a contractor while he was a full-time employee. She claimed that Kuda fired her in retaliation for her workplace discrimination complaints, pointing out that she is the only UK-based executive.
In response to a redundancy request filed by Kuda later, she retorted that the company was not struggling financially, citing the ability to pay Ogundeyi’s child’s nanny a year.
News of Hewat’s firing quickly spread within Kuda despite Ogundeyi being allegedly guaranteed confidentiality. When she sends an email to him about the violation, she claims that he ignored her.
In addition to the confusion, CTO Mustafa is said to have admitted that her firing was a mistake. He invited her to come back, but the discussion fell apart after Kuda rejected her request for settlement and delayed her response to her “data subject access” request.
Instead, the company sent her a formal redundancy consultation form a few weeks after she fired her, the submission said. Over the next few months, Hiwato claims that Kuda has retaliated further by cutting her salary, canceling her health insurance and withholding her full holiday amount. Hewat was unable to withstand a toxic environment and resigned in April 2024, citing a constructive termination.
The former CPO’s legal filing details how Kuda’s actions put her in financial trouble as the company refused to pay her outstanding wages. Hewat is currently seeking compensation for alleged unfair dismissal, sexism, mental distress, and alleged suspicions of failure to comply with proper workplace complaints. She also requires a refund of unpaid holiday pay and medical expenses.
This case was $55 million in 2021 from investors such as Valer Venture and Target Global as African companies increase regulatory pressures to improve governance and improve governance. Place KUDAs that raised substantial venture funds, including Series B rounds. Corporate accountability was first sparked in 2022 by a series of allegations of workplace conduct at Flutterwave, Africa’s most valuable startup.
With investors and the broader tech ecosystem looking closely, it could have a major impact on the company’s reputation and ability to attract top talent in the future. For Ogundeyi and the leadership team, we may face an increase in surveillance over the treatment of female employees.
This is an event that serves as a warning material for other high-tech companies where rapid growth can mask cracks in internal operations. How KUDA handles this legal challenge could shape the company’s future trajectory in terms of both employee relationships and Nigerian position and the broader fintech ecosystem.
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