Fair laying off 40% of staff

Used-vehicle leasing subscription service Fair says it is laying off 40 percent of its staff and removing CFO Tyler Painter, brother of CEO and co-founder Scott Painter.

In an email to Fair staff this week, Scott Painter stated: "As one of the pioneers in automotive fintech, we now need to focus on being a profitable company."

"Going forward, Fair will be a smaller team, focused on doing fewer things well," Painter also wrote. "As part of the process of achieving profitability, we’re reducing our headcount across the business."

The Wall Street Journal, citing a person with knowledge of the matter, said the layoffs involve nearly 300 people.

Fair uses its subscription model to provide used and certified used vehicles to customers by working with car dealerships.

Several investors have shown interest in the Santa Monica, Calif., company since its inception. Fair has raised $385 million in funding led by SoftBank Group Corp.

Fair announced a $500 million credit deal with Mizuho Bank in September as part of an expansion. The deal was expected to bolster Fair's partnership with Uber in providing drivers with access to vehicles for ride-hailing operations, regardless of their credit. Uber sold its unprofitable leasing business to Fair for $400 million in 2018.

The Mizuho deal was the third line of credit that Fair had closed in recent months. Previously, it received a $100 million debt facility and minor equity investment from Ally Financial and a $50 million increase to an existing credit line with Silicon Valley Bank this summer.

Ford Motor Co. sold its vehicle subscription service, Canvas, to Fair in a move to bow out of the subscription model, which a growing number of companies have found to be challenging and financially unsustainable.

Kirk Shryoc,has been named interim CEO in place of Tyler Painter.