Atlanta-based companies Greenwood, a digital banking services company founded for Black and Latino individuals, and The Gathering Spot, a networking hub and co-working space, announced Monday that they have resolved their business disputes.
News of a pact comes just a little over a week after the months-long rift spilled out into public amid a series of lawsuits. Founders of The Gathering Spot (TGS) accused Greenwood, which had acquired the co-working company last year, of breaching financial commitments.
“No one wins when the family feuds,” Ryan Glover, CEO of Greenwood, and Ryan Wilson, CEO of TGS, said in a joint statement that did not disclose terms. “We apologize for distracting our communities over the last week as this became a topic of so much public discussion. As we work together to build for our community and customers, we will continue to hold ourselves to the highest standards.”
The dispute started back in February, when Wilson and his TGS co-founder T’Keel “TK” Petersen sued Greenwood for allegedly withholding payments after acquiring the company.
In June, Greenwood countersued, saying the TGS founders misconstrued the purchase agreement.
Wilson filed a second suit on July 11 alleging Greenwood engaged in intentional misconduct and withheld a $5 million earn-out payment tied to TGS reaching a $15 million revenue target.
Then, TGS announced July 15 Petersen would cease to be the club’s chief operating officer at the end of July. But as part of the resolution, Petersen will remain with the company. Monday’s announcement said TGS “will continue to operate as an independent subsidiary of Greenwood under the leadership of its co-founders, Ryan Wilson and TK Petersen.”
The initial news of Petersen’s pending departure coincided with news that Greenwood had hired Mike McCloskey as Greenwood’s chief financial officer. Some social media postings highlighted that Petersen is Black and McCloskey is white, upsetting some TGS members.
Joey Womack, founder of Atlanta-based Goodie Nation, a tech-focused community of diverse founders and social entrepreneurs, has worked with both Greenwood and TGS’s founders. Womack released a statement on LinkedIn days after Wilson filed his second lawsuit expressing concern about developments.
“The recent news of leadership changes have hurt, shocked, angered, and disappointed many people — myself included,” he wrote. “I’ve seen and heard a lot of speculation, accusations, and spirited statements over the last several days. This makes me feel as if the community that has been carefully cultivated over the past 12-15 years is fracturing, and this deeply troubles me.”
Though terms of the settlement announced Monday were not disclosed, Greenwood and TGS said they were both “satisfied with the outcome and look forward to continuing to champion inclusive economic growth and community.”
Greenwood paid $50 million to acquire TGS in April 2022, according to a transcript of a July court hearing. Half of that amount was in the form of Greenwood stock.
Greenwood was founded in 2020 and its founders include activist and rapper Michael Render, more commonly known as Killer Mike, and former Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young. In November, Greenwood secured a $45 million funding round led by Black-founded investment firm Pendulum. With that funding, the company is now valued at $325 million. In May, Greenwood acquired Kinly, a rival fintech firm also aimed at serving Black customers.
In addition to Atlanta, TGS also has physical locations in Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., and virtual memberships in New York, Chicago, Charlotte, and other cities. TGS members have included film director Will Packer and actor and producer Issa Rae. President Joe Biden, basketball star LeBron James and other prominent figures have visited TGS locations.
-Freelance journalist Mike Jordan contributed to this report.
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