BlackRock Veteran Joins Sharplink Amid Booming Ethereum Treasury Market
A prominent player in the corporate Ethereum treasury space, Sharplink, a major public company holding significant Ethereum, has appointed Joseph Chalom, a veteran executive from investment giant BlackRock, as its new Co-CEO effective July 24th. This move underscores the accelerating institutional interest in Ethereum-based financial infrastructure.
Chalom’s Strategic Role at Sharplink
Prominent on his LinkedIn profile, Chalom will be tasked with shaping and implementing Sharplink’s global strategy concerning public markets and Ethereum digital infrastructure in his new position.
This strategic hiring occurs hand-in-hand with a landmark achievement by BlackRock. Its iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), which tracks the UCITS version of the ethereum spot index fund, recently surpassed the $10 billion asset mark, becoming the ETF’s third billion-dollar milestone and the third-fastest crypto ETF to reach this threshold.
BlackRock’s Dominance in Crypto ETFs
Chalom’s 20 years of experience at BlackRock, the behemoth managing over $95.7 billion in crypto assets, lend significant weight to his new role. During his tenure as Managing Director and Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships, he oversaw digital asset strategy and related index and data partnerships for the firm.
Sharplink officially announced BlackRock’s ETHA launch in July 2024 involved Chalom’s direct contribution. Furthermore, Chalom boasts a prior board role with the tokenized asset platform Securitize and the AI data analytics firm ClarityAI.
Competitive Landscape Heated by BitMine Acquisition
The timing of Chalom’s arrival at Sharplink is significant, as a major rival has recently upped the ante in Ethereum treasury acquisitions. One day before Sharplink’s announcement, rival Bitcoin miner BitMine Immersion Technologies revealed a substantial purchase.
BitMine, which declared its intent to establish an Ethereum treasury back in May, announced acquiring approximately 566,776 ETH, valued at over $2 billion. This single transaction eclipsed Sharplink’s previously reported holdings. Shortly after BitMine’s reveal of these 566k ETH, Sharplink reported its own $259 million ETH purchase in the preceding week.
It’s also worth noting that while Sharplink enlisted Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin to its board following its treasury launch last May, BitMine countered by appointing Tom Lee, the founder of Fundstrat and a prominent crypto advocate, to its board in June.
