Shaken by scandal, Canva speeds up its hunt for a chief financial officer

Canva’s search for a new chief financial officer will cross borders as it deals with an internal investigation into an incident which sparked an early departure by its CFO.

Canva’s former chief financial officer, Damien Singh. Picture: Simon Bullard

Canva investors are looking to move on quickly as the tech company faces allegations of executive misconduct, backing calls for a more experienced finance boss to boost growth and push ahead with a potential IPO in the US.

Chief financial officer Damien Singh resigned last week following an internal investigation, amid claims of “inappropriate behaviour”. Canva hasn’t revealed details of the probe but said it had a “zero-tolerance policy for inappropriate behaviour”.

The Australian has attempted to contact Mr Singh several times. It is understood that he denies the allegations.

Before he resigned Canva was looking for a more experienced chief financial officer to steer the $40bn company through its next growth phase – a search it has since accelerated.

This is despite Mr Singh receiving a “CFO of the year” award from an industry magazine just a few months ago.

Amid the uncertainty, some of Canva’s earliest investors rallied behind the company on Friday, saying the absence of a financial chief would not hamper operations.

Airtree co-founder and partner Craig Blair said Mr Singh’s departure would not have any immediate effect on Canva, which is now generating annual revenue of more than $2bn.

“We have full confidence in the Canva team and don’t expect the transition to impact their day-to-day or long-term performance,” he said.

Meanwhile, a Blackbird spokeswoman said the firm believed Canva’s preference for a more experienced CFO was only “natural”.

“It’s natural that a company of Canva’s size and trajectory looks to bring in a CFO with experience in the public company world,” she said.

The spokeswoman said the change would not cause trouble and the company would be able to advance under a new lead.

“We’re confident that Canva will secure an excellent CFO and that this will enhance the company’s ability to achieve its ambitions,“ she said.

Mr Singh previously held roles with REFFIND as a finance director and auditing roles with PKF and Grant Thornton.

Like many Australian tech firms prior to listing, Canva wants to hire someone who has first-hand experience in publicly traded companies.

The company is completing a domestic and international search.

There has been much speculation about Canva listing in the US in 2025.

But Cameron Adams, a Canva co-founder and chief product officer, told The Australian earlier this month that while an initial public offering would be a natural “evolution” for the company, there were no immediate plans.

“We can’t and nor do we want to put a date on it. There’s nothing immediate. There’s no impending deadline or timeline that means we need to IPO,” he said.

“So if we are going to do one, we’ll do it under our own steam for our own good reasons, without any pressure being applied. So no plans there.”

Canva has not publicly commented on the investigation into Mr Singh’s alleged behaviour.

“Creating a safe environment for everyone is our number one priority,” a Canva spokesman said.

“We have a zero-tolerance policy for inappropriate behaviour and we’re fully committed to thoroughly investigating and actioning any instances of this.”

Canva hasn’t publicly said who will stand in as interim CFO. The Australian understands senior leaders from its broader finance team have temporarily taken on parts of the role.

Mr Adams founded Canva with Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht more than a decade ago.