Barry Silbert has resigned as chairman of the board of Grayscale Investments, the company announced Tuesday in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Silbert, CEO of Grayscale’s parent company Digital Currency Group (DCG), has not commented publicly on his resignation as of this writing. Another Grayscale board member, Mark Murphy, also resigned from the board along with Silbert. Both men’s resignations are scheduled to take effect on January 1.
Mark Shifke, DCG’s current CFO, will replace Silbert as Grayscale’s chairman, according to the company. Matt Kummell, DCG’s Vice President of Operations, and Edward McGee, Grayscale’s CFO, were also added to the Board of Directors.
“In line with Grayscale’s commitment to responsible growth, we are pleased to welcome Mark Shifke, Matt Kummell and Edward McGee to the Grayscale Board of Directors,” a Grayscale spokesperson said. decryption. “Grayscale and our investors will benefit from our respective experiences in the financial services and asset management industries as we prepare for Grayscale’s next chapter.”
A spokesperson declined to comment further on the reasons for the leadership change at a critical time for Grayscale.
Analysts expect the SEC to approve the first spot Bitcoin ETF within the next two weeks. This is a financial product that allows traditional financial institutions and investors to gain exposure to Bitcoin without holding any cryptocurrency. Grayscale is one of a handful of companies with a Bitcoin ETF application currently under review by federal agencies.
The approval of Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF application will undoubtedly mark a watershed moment in the company’s history. Analysts have estimated that the implementation of a Bitcoin ETF could bring as much as $1 trillion worth of institutional capital into the cryptocurrency market.
These events will also give Grayscale a chance to reset after a rough 2023 for parent company DCG.
Last July, New York-based cryptocurrency exchange Gemini sued DCG and Silbert over the confusing fallout from the bankruptcy of DCG-owned digital asset company Genesis earlier this year. Gemini co-founders Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss accused Silbert of lying about the safety of Gemini customer funds, some of which were handled by Genesis.
There has been some progress. Last August, the two companies announced they had reached an “agreement in principle” to repay the credits. At the time, the agreement was described as resolving outstanding issues and achieving a fair recovery for creditors (between 70 and 90 percent in U.S. dollar terms).
Then, in October, the New York Attorney General sued the entire company, including DCG, Genesis, Gemini, Silbert and former Genesis CEO Soichiro Moro, accusing them of defrauding more than 200,000 customers out of more than $1 billion.
It’s unclear whether Silbert’s departure is related to DCG’s exposure to ongoing legal troubles. Some analysts have speculated that management may have personally driven this move in order to fulfill Grayscale’s Bitcoin ETF hopes.
Others pondered whether the development could mean a sale for Grayscale next year.
Edited by Stacey Elliott.
