Barry Silbert is stepping down as president of Grayscale. This is notable news considering Grayscale has filed with the SEC for a Bitcoin ETF. Does this have anything to do with this?
In any case, Silbert’s dismissal was widely received enthusiastically by the crypto community. Mark Shikfe, DCG’s Chief Financial Officer, will replace Silbert effective January 1.
Barry Silbert leaves Grayscale
On Boxing Day, Grayscale Investments announced that Barry Silbert, CEO of Digital Valuta Group (DCG), Grayscale’s parent company, will step down from the Grayscale board with effect from January 1, 2024.
This is evident from one of the documents that Grayscale filed with the SEC. You can see the document as a statement without any real justification.
Is this good news or bad news?
So no official reason has been given, and this fuels the rumors… in a good way! There is speculation on social media that Grayscale’s bid to convert its Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) into an ETF has a better chance of success without silver. This decision could convince the SEC that there is no conflict of interest in the DCG’s organizational structure.
Messari CEO Ryan Selkis says this is “hyper-optimistic.” Selkis was not alone in this view, as Ram Ahluwalia, CEO of Lumina Wealth Management, described Silbert’s decision as a Christmas gift to Michael Sonnenshein, CEO of Grayscale.
In addition to increasing the chances of the SEC approving Grayscale’s ETF application, Ahluwalia said Silbert’s resignation would also give the company more autonomy.
Silbert and the SEC
Of course, there is more going on in the background. Silbert’s name isn’t entirely clear in the eyes of the SEC. Genesis, a lender that also falls under Silbert’s DCG, is accused by the SEC of selling unregistered securities.
They did this in partnership with Gemini, called Gemini Earn, with the latter depositing customer money into Genesis to promise interest payments. In November 2020, FTX collapsed and with it the Gemini Earn product also failed. Customers are still waiting for the approximately $900 million they deposited with Gemini and Genesis.
Silbert was accused of defrauding investors by hiding more than $1 billion in losses.
Source: BTC Direct
Source link
Barry Siefert is an accomplished journalist and author at The Nation View. He is known for his expertise in the field of cryptocurrency, and has written extensively on the topic. With a background in finance and economics, Barry has a deep understanding of the underlying technology and market forces that drive the crypto industry.
