- The Block CEO, Michael McCaffrey, has been forced to resign after failing to disclose a series of loans from Alameda Research.
- The company’s chief revenue officer, Bobby Moran, will immediately act as the crypto media firm’s CEO.
- According to the statement on the company website, Michael McCaffrey did not inform anyone about the over $40 million loan.
The Block Chief Executive Officer, Michael McCaffrey, has resigned due to reports claiming he failed to disclose a series of loans from Alameda Research, a company linked to the insolvent FTX. McCaffrey had allegedly obtained loans from the troubled crypto exchange company without informing anyone.
A statement on the platform website reveals that McCaffrey took his first loan of $12 million from Alameda Research in February 2021 to buy out investors. He took the second loan, worth $15 million, to fund his day-to-day operations in the firm.
The former CEO later received a third loan worth $16 million from the trading firm, which he used to purchase a luxurious apartment in the Bahamas, where the FTX is based, raising many concerns about McCaffrey’s decision to resign from the company. However, the ex-CEO has confirmed via Twitter thread shortly after the revelation that he chose not to disclose the loan in fear of compromising the news objectivity in covering the insolvent FTX, Axios reported.
Bobby Moran will immediately take over as the firm’s new CEO. According to Moran, McCaffrey failed to disclose the loans to the site’s leadership team, demonstrating a “serious lack of judgment.” He added that no one outside McCaffrey knew of the three loans, totaling $43 million. Moran has further stipulated that:
“No one at the Block knew this financial arrangement besides Mikel. From our experience, we have seen no evidence that Mike ever sought to improperly influence the newsroom or research teams, particularly in their coverage of SBF, FTX, and Alameda Research.”
Employees’ Shock Upon Crypto Media Company’s Reveal
Nonetheless, McCaffrey will be resigning from the company’s board of directors, where he was the sole member, which is expanding to three people. Despite his departure from the board, Michael will still maintain his ownership of the company as its majority shareholder.
The CEO’s resignation has attracted different opinions and shocked some employees in the crypto media firm. The VP of Research, Larry Cermak, has expressed his shock stating via a tweet that:
“The last four months can’t get much worse as I almost lost all the Block bonuses and compensation for four years to the FTX collapse.”
The Block’s editor-at-large Frank Chaparro also noted, ” I’m gutted by this news, which was briefed to the company. Underpinning my shock are feelings of utter disgust and betrayal by Mike’s actions, greed, and lack of disclosure. He’s a scum, keeping every single one of us in the dark.”
Since FTX filed for bankruptcy early in November, various news outlets have revealed financial links between SBF and political parties in the United States, including lawmakers from different parties on committees who are investigating the demise of the crypto exchange. The resignation of McCaffrey is the latest in a string of industry causalities linked to the downfall of SBF’s crypto empire, FTX.
