Digital Asset named Tony James to its board of directors on July 18, 20181. James was Blackstone's executive vice chairman at the time. Two more directors joined that same day: AG Gangadhar, a former engineering executive at Amazon, Google and Uber, and Stephan Leithner, a board member at Deutsche Börse Group. Digital Asset had more than 170 staff worldwide, Crowdfund Insider reported2.
The third board appointment at Digital Asset on the record since 2018
Leadership moves CryptoLately has verified at Digital Asset, by year
- 2018: 5
- 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025
Moves: The Moves Ledger, CryptoLately's record of verified leadership moves, Oct. 3, 2016 to Oct. 2, 2026.
Read the chart as a table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| 2018 | 5 |
| 2019 | 2 |
| 2020 | 0 |
| 2021 | 0 |
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 0 |
| 2024 | 0 |
| 2025 | 1 |
Three board appointments on the record in 2018
Board appointments CryptoLately has verified, by year
- 2018: 3
- 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
Moves: The Moves Ledger, CryptoLately's record of verified leadership moves, Oct. 3, 2016 to Oct. 2, 2026.
Read the chart as a table
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| 2017 | 1 |
| 2018 | 3 |
| 2019 | 3 |
| 2020 | 10 |
| 2021 | 10 |
| 2022 | 4 |
| 2023 | 4 |
| 2024 | 6 |
The move
Digital Asset's own announcement framed the hire around scale. “Digital Asset is on an ambitious path to deliver the first DLT solution to power systemically consequential marketplaces. It is now time to scale access to our technology to meet rising demand,” said Blythe Masters, Digital Asset's chief executive officer at the time1. James gave his own reason for joining. “Digital Asset has both the leadership and the technology it needs to deliver. I'm delighted to play a role in guiding the company,” James told Crowdfund Insider, adding that his family office had invested in Digital Asset2.
James brought a specific résumé to the seat. He sat on the board of Blackstone's general partner, a unit called Blackstone Group Management L.L.C., and on the firm's management committee and every one of its investment committees. James had held a bigger job before those seats. He served as Blackstone's president and chief operating officer, Crowdfund Insider reported2.
The board before and after
Blythe Masters, Digital Asset's chief executive at the time, already sat on the board2. So did Digital Asset's founders, Sunil Hirani and Don R. Wilson. Six more directors held seats already: Michael Bodson, Peter Hiom, George Nunn, Sanoke Viswanathan, Sallie Krawcheck and Cristóbal Conde, Crowdfund Insider reported. Digital Asset, founded in 2014, already had an exchange as a client. The Australian Securities Exchange planned to swap its post-trade system for Digital Asset's tech. Crowdfund Insider called the deal "a solid validation of the services the company provides".
What came next
Digital Asset kept adding directors and capital after James joined its board. CryptoPotato reported on February 5, 2020, that Digital Asset had closed its second $35 million round in two months. Samsung Venture Investment Corp and Salesforce Ventures took part. Digital Asset also named Susan Hauser to its board that same month. Hauser was a former Microsoft corporate vice president, CryptoPotato reported3. By then, Yuval Rooz led Digital Asset as chief executive. Rooz said the Samsung and Salesforce investment “demonstrates the potential that technology giants see in DAML as the standard for smart contracts”.
Sources
- "Blackstone's Tony James, Ex-Googler Gangadhar and Deutsche Börse Group's Leithner join Digital Asset Board," Digital Asset, July 18, 2018, https://web.archive.org/web/20200804112834/https://blog.digitalasset.com/press-release/blackstones-tony-james-ex-googler-gangadhar-and-deutsche-b%C3%B6rse-groups-leithner-join-digital-asset-board
- JD Alois, "DLT Provider Digital Asset Adds Big Names To Board Including Blackstone, Former Google, And Deutsche Börse Execs," Crowdfund Insider, July 18, 2018, https://www.crowdfundinsider.com/2018/07/136633-dlt-provider-digital-asset-adds-big-names-to-board-including-blackstone-former-google-and-deutsche-borse-execs/
- Jordan Lyanchev, "Samsung and Salesforce Participate In $35M Funding Round For Blockchain Company," CryptoPotato, February 5, 2020, https://news.google.com/rss/articles/CBMipwFBVV95cUxNVVJpeGhIeFktdUdDV0kxVE9xN3Vubi1MT1ByVVRxMHNOam1lU25haHBRVm1vZmZjOGc2VzVpWXUzZjE1aEU5ay11Ymg2UmxmSk1Lb1lTYkJwVXdXVVg3QmhqQWR4d1pGSDVYTkk5MWZmQ2hMZGFCbDVwYTJ3YUk1TUVZWkdiLTJDQXpjalhER0J5VHV1S3ZKRWdTTC11b2ZGS1BTejl1QQ?oc=5