Ex-Binary Capital employee sues for alleged harassment
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A female former employee at Binary Capital alleges that the VC firm tried to silence her after she quit, including alleged threats to withhold her share of the profits from successful investments (i.e., carried interest), according to a lawsuit filed in San Mateo Superior Court on Thursday.
The details: The former employee, Ann Lai, says that Binary Capital's culture was sexist, including commentary about sexual encounters, women's bodies, and inappropriate behavior toward female staff. After she resigned in May 2016, Binary Capital partner Justin Caldbeck allegedly threatened her ability to find work if she disclosed anything about her time at the firm. She quickly lost out on multiple jobs because of the firm's statements about her and her performance.
Piling on: Lai's complaint comes a week after a report from The Information revealed that Caldbeck had been sexually harassing some female startup founders. Since then, it's also been revealed that apparel startup Stitch Fix requested in 2013 that Calbeck, at the time working for Lightspeed Venture Partners, be removed from its board after he harassed the startup's founder, though she was forced to signed a non-disparagement agreement about the situation. Over the last few days, both Caldbeck and his partner, Jonathan Teo have effectively resigned, and Binary is expected to be wound down.
