Dan Price’s Generosity Wasn’t Enough to Clear His Name — Why He Resigned
Dan Price resigned as CEO of Gravity Payments because “his presence had become a distraction.” His name has been tied to a string of scandals, which he says he now needs to focus on.
Aug. 18 2022, Published 12:15 p.m. ET
It isn’t every day that you hear about a wealthy company founder and CEO giving up a large chunk of their salary in order to raise that of their employees. But Gravity Payments founder Dan Price did just that in 2015 when he slashed his nearly $1 million salary to $70,000.
Despite the self-sacrificing act and commitment to his company, Price felt obliged to resign from his CEO position. Here’s why.
Dan Price resigned as CEO of Gravity Payments because “his presence had become a distraction.”
Dan Price (right)
Gravity Payments, a credit card processing and financial services company, was founded by Price 18 years ago. But his time leading the company has officially come to an end. On Aug. 17, Price announced via Twitter that he had resigned from his CEO role.
Although Price has expressed time and time again that his “No.1 priority is for [his] employees to work for the best company in the world,” the string of scandals attached to his name seems to interfere with him running the company. Serving as more of a “distraction” and less of a leader, Price decided to relinquish his role “to focus full time on fighting false accusations made against [him].”
If you’re wondering what those might be, keep reading.
Price’s reputation has taken multiple hits, especially after he was sued by his brother.
Price may be the founder and former CEO of Gravity Payments, but he’s human. And let’s face it, everyone has skeletons in their closet. Trouble is, Price’s skeletons continue to peek out. In 2015, the same year Price reduced his salary to $70,000 and raised his employees to around the same level, his brother and former business partner, Lucas Price, filed a civil lawsuit against him.
Lucas accused the former CEO of “awarding himself excessive compensation” and “working against [his] interests as a minority shareholder.” Although the judge ruled in Dan's favor, he hasn’t lived the lawsuit down.
In April 2022, Price was named a suspect in an investigation involving the “felony rape of a drugged victim,” reports KIRO7. Price allegedly met up with a woman at a restaurant where he became “intoxicated.” At the conclusion of the date, Price reportedly offered to let the woman sit in his Tesla while she waited for an Uber.
During that time, Price was said to have “made a sexual advance” toward the woman who then “pushed him away.” He proceeded to “grab the woman’s throat” and drive off with her still inside the vehicle. The events repeated for a second time until the woman was allegedly helped “by a friend off the parking lot.”
Price was later charged with fourth-degree assault with sexual motivation, fourth-degree assault, and reckless driving, The Seattle Times reported.
Sadly, the allegations don’t end there.
During the same year, Price was sued by his brother, his ex-wife, Kristie Colon “described being beaten and waterboarded by her ex” during an Oct. 2015 TEDx talk, though she never named Price. While many immediately connected Price to the allegations, he claims that it “never happened,” cites The Seattle Times.
What is Dan Price’s net worth?
While much of Dan Price’s personal life has been made public for society to critique, his net worth hasn’t been confirmed. Still, multiple sources speculate Price is worth roughly $12 million and that isn't a farfetched estimate given Price collected between $900,000 and $2 million for several years he served as Gravity Payments CEO.
Tammi Kroll will assume the position of Gravity Payments’ CEO
In one of his latest Twitter posts, Price also shared that Gravity Payments’ current COO, Tammi Kroll, would be assigned the role of CEO. Prior to joining Gravity Payments in September 2015, Kroll worked for Forbes Technology Council and Yahoo.