Robinhood's VP of product just left the buzzy startup after less than two years on the job

Greylock Josh Elman

Josh Elman, Robinhood's vice president of product, has left the buzzy stock-trading startup after less than two years in the role, Business Insider has learned.
Elman joined Robinhood in May 2018 from Greylock Investors, where he had most recently served as general partner at the well-known venture capital firm.
Elman's time at Robinhood coincided with well-publicized missteps by the firm, including its failed launch of a checking and savings product and the exposure of a glitch that allowed users access to infinite leverage. A source familiar with the matter said management did not tie the departure to the past events.
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Josh Elman, the vice president of product at Robinhood, has left the buzzy stock-trading startup after less than two years on the job, Business Insider has learned.

Elman joined Robinhood in March 2018 after over eight years at Greylock Investors, where he had most recently served as a general partner at the venture capital firm. He remained on as a venture partner at Greylock, according to his LinkedIn, where he supported the investments he had made.

The announcement was made internally via an email Monday, according to a source familiar with the matter. No replacement was named, the source said, and those reporting directly to Elman will manage their respective teams for now.

"After 20+ years of building and working with startups, it is time for a break," Elman told Business Insider in an emailed statement. "As Robinhood has just launched Cash Management and is well set up to build into 2020 and beyond, now is a perfect time to start that break."

"Under Josh's leadership, our product teams helped expand our offerings to include a revamped Robinhood Gold, global stocks, Newsfeed, Snacks, and most recently, cash management," a Robinhood spokesperson told Business Insider in an emailed statement. "We are incredibly grateful for his many contributions to our mission."

Elman's time at Robinhood coincided with two major missteps by the startup. However, management did not tie the departure to the events of the past 12 months, according to the source.

In December, Robinhood announced the launch of a checking and savings product, only to backtrack a few days later after it was revealed the company hadn't checked that customers' money would be insured, despite saying it would be.

Still, that didn't stop the company from attracting interest from investors, announcing in July it had raised a $323 million Series E round at a $7.6 billion valuation.

However, Robinhood once again drew the spotlight this month when a glitch was discovered that allowed users to access "infinite leverage," with one user growing $4,000 into $1 million.

A Robinhood spokesperson had said on Thursday the company closed the loophole and implemented a "permanent update" intended to "prevent anyone from engaging in this pattern of trades."

Got a tip? Contact this reporter via email at ddefrancesco@businessinsider.com, Signal (646-768-1650) or direct message on Twitter @dandefrancesco.

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