Long wordvomit incoming!!
I think the forum is a valuable place for collecting feedback, but we need to remember that there are numerous ways in which Monzo gets user feedback (in-app, surveys, emails, etc.) and a lot of the people on the forum are people who are very familiar with fintech and might use Monzo differently from the average user. I have 5-6 friends who own accounts in fintech banks and guess what- they use it like a normal bank card. They have no interest in participating on forums and only care that they can look up transactions easily/ everything works/ they can easily contact CS. They rarely go overseas too. It’s sometimes frustrating when I get excited about a feature, but they don’t care about how cool or revolutionary I think it is. 
Yes, Monzo has made a pledge for transparency, but we don’t know every single aspect that goes into building a feature or other internal reasons for decision-making. Oh yes, remember the ATM charge vote? A lot of people were unhappy with how that result ended up- wisdom of the crowd may not always be the best option. Tom opted for a different choice as well but they ended up honouring the community’s decision.
It is such a feel-good factor when we think our opinions hold some sway, but the onus is on the staff to make sure the company is successful- decisions should be left up to them. If they followed every single suggestion, the company would be directionless.
Maybe this defines me as a ‘Monzo apologist’ to some people but I want to state that I don’t agree with every feature added, but I don’t immediately throw out my card because I don’t have the perfect bank with 300 features. I also have a preference for things I want right now, but that doesn’t mean it is the same for everyone else eg. I know a lot of people are waiting for joint accounts/ 3D secure, which is useless for me.