nChain named David Washburn chief executive officer of its London-based nChain Limited on March 7, 2019. The announcement, carried on CoinGeek, said he would replace Jimmy Nguyen, who moved to chair the company's Strategic Advisory Board1.
The second CEO appointment at nChain on the record since 2017
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 |
|---|---|
| Dec. 5, 2017 | Nguyen became CEO. Jimmy Nguyen was named Chief Executive Officer of nChain |
| March 7, 2019 | Nguyen left as CEO. Jimmy Nguyen left as Chief Executive Officer of nChain |
| March 7, 2019 | Washburn became CEO. David Washburn was named Chief Executive Officer of nChain |
| Oct. 20, 2021 | Washburn left as CEO. David Washburn left as Chief Executive Officer of nChain |
| Oct. 20, 2021 | Yuksel became CEO. Hakan Yuksel was named Chief Executive Officer of nChain |
Eight CEO appointments on the record in 2019
CEO appointments CryptoLately has verified, by year
- 2019: 8
- 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
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 |
|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 |
| 2017 | 3 |
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2019 | 8 |
| 2020 | 7 |
| 2021 | 6 |
| 2022 | 18 |
| 2023 | 17 |
The handoff
BlockTribune published its own report on March 12, 2019. The report described Washburn's background in a single line: a Ph.D. in physiology and biophysics, paired with more than 15 years of experience in capital markets2.
Washburn tied his own pitch to the platform he was joining. “The Bitcoin SV blockchain allows traditional banking enterprises, as well as a diverse range of businesses, with a more cost-effective and secure platform for executing transactions,” Washburn said. “It saves time and money, a foundational hallmark of any technological disruptor”2. Nguyen, in his new advisory role, framed the hire as a scaling move. “With the addition of David Washburn, we are looking to significantly scale and deliver value to all of our clients across the globe,” Nguyen said1.
nChain before and after
The release called nChain “the global leader in advisory, research, and development of open blockchain technologies.” The company said it was founded in 2015 and headquartered in London with 50 people1. Nguyen had led nChain for 15 months before the switch. nChain Group had promoted him from chief business officer on December 5, 2017.
What came next
Washburn led nChain for roughly two and a half years. GlobeNewswire reported on October 20, 2021 that nChain had appointed Hakan Yuksel as his successor. The release credited Washburn with “an instrumental role in positioning the Company to deliver enterprise-grade data integrity solutions” during his tenure3. Stefan Matthews, the executive chairman, thanked Washburn for leading the July 2021 launch of Kensei, the company's data integrity platform, and said Washburn would stay on in an advisory role for several more months.
Sources
- "Blockchain innovator nChain appoints David Washburn as CEO," nChain (via CoinGeek), March 7, 2019, https://coingeek.com/blockchain-innovator-nchain-appoints-david-washburn-as-ceo/
- "Blockchain Firm nChain Appoints David Washburn As CEO," BlockTribune, March 12, 2019, https://blocktribune.com/blockchain-firm-nchain-appoints-david-washburn-as-ceo/
- "nChain Appoints Hakan Yuksel as CEO," GlobeNewswire, October 20, 2021, https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/10/20/2317070/0/en/nChain-Appoints-Hakan-Yuksel-as-CEO.html