(Bloomberg) -- Current, a $2 billion startup that markets digital banking services to young people and Black Americans, was accused of discriminating against a former senior director and firing her right before she was set to return from leave for breast cancer treatment.

Isabelle Mitura sued the company Thursday in New York federal court alleging workers at Current are “consistently harassed, subjected to unfair and unequal terms and conditions of employment and dismissed because of their race, sex and legally-protected activities,” even as management claims it “fosters equity in banking.”

The suit also names as defendants Chief Executive Officer Stuart Sopp, a former currency trader at Morgan Stanley who founded New York-based Current in 2015, and Alex Sergiyenko, the company’s head of people. Mitura, who served as Current’s head of talent from May 2021 to January 2023, said she was belittled and insulted during her time at the company and constantly reminded of her sex, race, age and family status.

“Starting soon after she began and continuing until shortly before she went on leave, Sergiyenko often remarked, sometimes in front of others, that Mitura was ‘an old Asian with no kids,’” she said in her suit. “Sergiyenko said this in a deliberately mean-spirited manner, meant to put Mitura in her place and convey her place in Current’s hierarchy.”

Mitura also claims Sopp expressed frustration at having to interview “too many Indians” for the position of chief risk officer and “extolled the virtues of the former British Empire in front of employees, many of whom hail from countries that had been violently colonized.”

Discussions ‘Misrepresented’

The company called her allegations “unfounded” and pledged to fight the lawsuit. “Some of the statements and discussions mentioned have been misrepresented and are out of context, resulting in inaccuracies,” company spokesperson Erin Bruehl said. “These allegations are not reflective of our dedication to promoting a diverse and inclusive environment at Current where everyone has a chance to excel.”

Current tripled its valuation to $2.2 billion in 2021, according to the lawsuit, after raising $220 million in a fundraising round that saw venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz take a large stake. Current claims to be a financial technology company “built for everyday Americans held back by a banking system that wasn’t designed for them.”

Mitura said she was diagnosed with breast cancer in June 2022 and went on leave for treatment, but was terminated two weeks before she was set to return, ostensibly as part of a round of layoffs.  

Sergiyenko told her openly “that her replacements had built relationships within the company while she was on leave — an open admission that he made his decision because of her leave status,” according to the suit. “Sergiyenko was no doubt also motivated by Mitura’s numerous complaints about Current’s open discrimination against its employees.”

The case is Isabelle Mitura v Finco Services Inc., 23-cv-2879, US District Court, Southern District of New York.

(Updates to include company’s marketing strategy. An earlier version corrected the spelling of Andreessen Horowitz.)

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