Michael Kong resigned from the Sonic Labs board on June 19, 20261. Sonic Labs posted the announcement on social media on June 19, 2026, and Kong confirmed his departure in his own post on June 20.
The second board exit at Sonic Labs on the record since 2026
Every move CryptoLately has verified there, by the day it became public
Moves: The Moves Ledger, CryptoLately's record of verified leadership moves, Oct. 3, 2016 to Oct. 2, 2026.
Read the chart as a table
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| Sept. 28, 2025 | Demeter became CEO. Mitchell Demeter was named Chief Executive Officer of Sonic Labs |
| Sept. 28, 2025 | Kong left as CEO. Michael Kong left as Chief Executive Officer (moving to chief information officer and board) of Sonic Labs |
| Feb. 20, 2026 | Demeter left as CEO. Mitchell Demeter left as Chief Executive Officer of Sonic Labs |
| June 19, 2026 | Cronje left the board. Andre Cronje left the board of Sonic Labs |
| June 19, 2026 | Kong left the board. Michael Kong left the board of Sonic Labs |
10 board exits on the record in 2026, the most of any year
Board exits CryptoLately has verified, by year; 2026 through Oct. 2, 2026
- 2026: 10
- 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 |
|---|---|
| 2019 | 1 |
| 2020 | 2 |
| 2021 | 4 |
| 2022 | 0 |
| 2023 | 2 |
| 2024 | 4 |
| 2025 | 7 |
| 2026 | 10 |
The resignation
Kong left alongside two other founding board members, DeFi developer Andre Cronje and David Richardson, Crowdfund Insider reported2. The three had shaped Sonic's early technical direction. Crowdfund Insider said they were “transitioning their roles completely, stepping away from any ongoing business decision-making responsibilities”. Sonic Labs named Matt Visser chief executive in the same move. Kosta Kourkoumelis took the chief operating officer post, Crowdfund Insider said.
He framed his exit around the years behind him. “I'm proud of my eight years with Fantom and Sonic. When I joined Fantom in 2018, there was no team, no leadership, and no technology,” Kong wrote1. He pointed to a December 2019 mainnet launch as the project's founding milestone. Sonic's incoming leaders, he added, could still reach him for "advice or support".
The backdrop to the exit
Crowdfund Insider tied the board change to weak results. Sonic's total value locked, the money deposited in its apps, had fallen from highs above $1 billion, and the outlet described its native token as deep into a decline from an earlier peak2. Kong distanced himself from the announcement's authorship, even while confirming its news. “Although I did not know about this post in advance nor participate in its authorship at all, I wish the new leadership all the best,” he wrote1.
What to watch
Visser and Kourkoumelis now run a chain that Crowdfund Insider said is prioritizing “greater transparency, stronger compliance efforts, and initiatives aimed at restoring confidence among users and builders”2. Sonic's own total value locked will show whether the new leadership changes the project's trajectory. Cronje's and Richardson's next moves, if either returns to a public role in crypto, would test how completely Crowdfund Insider's reported "deliberate handoff" separated Sonic's founders from the chain they built.
Sources
- Michael Kong, "Michael Kong on X," X, June 20, 2026, https://x.com/michaelfkong/status/2068241208661471569
- Omar Faridi, "DeFi Developer Andre Cronje Steps Down from Sonic Labs Board with Two Others as S Token Plummets 97% from All-Time High," Crowdfund Insider, June 21, 2026, https://www.crowdfundinsider.com/2026/06/286871-defi-developer-andre-cronje-steps-down-from-sonic-labs-board-with-two-others-as-s-token-plummets-97-from-all-time-high/