In this episode of The Room Podcast, we sit down with Jason Lee, the founder of Salt Labs and DailyPay, to explore his journey from finance to fintech entrepreneurship. Salt Labs, Jason’s latest venture, focuses on empowering workers to maximize their earnings potential, while DailyPay revolutionized the way employees access their wages. 

We cover a range of topics such as the need for improvement in front-line workers' payment structures, how Jason’s years in investment banking shaped his approach to entrepreneurship, his pivotal "aha" moment that led him to create DailyPay and Salt Labs, and advice to founders looking to start fundraising. 

(00:00) Introduction

(05:38) Where did Jason grow up and how did that shape his view of the world?

(07:23) Did Jason always think he was going to become a founder?

(09:11) What attracted Jason to stay with Goldman for 16 years?

(10:39) When did Jason eventually leave Goldman?

(14:31) How did Jason convince employers to integrate Daily Pay into current payment structures?

(18:18) How did Jason get into this nice crossover of lending and fundraising?

(20:34) How has Jason scaled Daily Pay?

(23:50) How has Salt Labs helped solve employee retention and turnover?

(27:56) How was the experience fundraising for Salt Labs?

(30:03) What advice does Jason have for early-stage founders looking to fundraise?

(33:24) What was a moment in Jason's founding journey when things didn't go as planned?

(38:18) What are the key trends in the hourly worker market that will shape the evolution of Salt Labs?

(41:18) What's next for Salt Labs?

(44:38) Who is a woman in Jason's life that had a profound impact on him and his career?

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Brought to you by Perkins Coie and Mercury.*
*Mercury is a financial technology company, not a bank. Banking services provided by Choice Financial Group and Evolve Bank & Trust; Members FDIC.

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