Paxos announced on February 3, 2022, that it had appointed Ben Gray as its global general counsel1. Law360 Pulse reported the hire on February 3, 2022, writing that Paxos “appointed financial technology giant Block Inc.'s former deputy general counsel Ben Gray to become its global general counsel”2. Gray had overseen global compliance and legal teams at Block, formerly known as Square, before the move.
Three leadership moves at Paxos on the record since 2022
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 |
|---|---|
| Feb. 3, 2022 | Gray became Global General Counsel. Ben Gray was named Global General Counsel of Paxos |
| Sept. 8, 2022 | Ceballos became Chief Compliance Officer. Carolina Ceballos was named Chief Compliance Officer of Paxos |
| May 14, 2024 | Giancarlo joined the board. J. Christopher Giancarlo joined the board of Paxos |
37 executive hires on the record in 2022
Executive hires CryptoLately has verified, by year; 2026 through Oct. 2, 2026
- 2022: 37
- 2019, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024, 2025, 2026
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 | 11 |
| 2020 | 12 |
| 2021 | 27 |
| 2022 | 37 |
| 2023 | 20 |
| 2024 | 39 |
| 2025 | 59 |
| 2026 | 45 |
The move
Charles Cascarilla, Paxos's chief executive and co-founder, tied the hire directly to the company's regulatory strategy in the announcement. “Our success hinges on the ability to build compliant products within established regulatory frameworks globally. Ben brings the experience we need to scale this core competency internationally and as we partner with global fintechs and institutions,” Cascarilla said in the announcement1.
Gray described his own reasons for the move in the same release. “Our financial system is desperately in need of modernization, and Paxos is tackling this problem head on. Paxos and its regulation-first approach to building innovative products will play a central role in the revitalization of our global financial infrastructure. I'm excited to join a team that is changing how money moves globally and how people access the economy,” Gray said1.
Before and after at Paxos
Paxos's announcement credited Gray's time at Block with scaling a specific product. During his tenure there, the company's Cash App built bitcoin deposit and withdrawal access for its 40 million users, Paxos said1. Gray's hire came alongside other executive additions since mid-2021, including a head of revenue and a chief people officer. Paxos said it expected its infrastructure to power more than one billion consumer wallets by the end of 2022.
What came next
Gray was still Paxos's general counsel seven months later, in September 2022. On September 8, 2022, he wrote the company's own announcement that it had hired Carolina Ceballos as its first chief compliance officer4. He remained general counsel nearly two years after his own hire, when Paxos ran a five-question interview with him in December 2023. “Paxos understands that transparency is a cornerstone of building trust, and trust is key to driving mainstream adoption of these groundbreaking technologies,” Gray said there3. He pointed to the company's monthly audited reserve reports as proof of that approach. The same interview credited him with guiding Paxos through "pivotal launches" since his 2022 start.
Sources
- "Paxos Welcomes Ben Gray as Global General Counsel as it Targets Powering One Billion Consumer Wallets in 2022," Paxos, February 3, 2022, https://www.paxos.com/newsroom/paxos-welcomes-ben-gray-as-global-general-counsel-as-it-targets-powering-one-billion-consumer-wallets-in-2022
- Clarice Silber, "Paxos Hires Former Block Atty As Global General Counsel," Law360 Pulse, February 3, 2022, https://www.law360.com/pulse/articles/1461715/paxos-hires-former-block-atty-as-global-general-counsel
- "5 Questions with Paxos General Counsel Ben Gray," Paxos, December 13, 2023, https://www.paxos.com/blog/5-questions-with-paxos-general-counsel-ben-gray
- Ben Gray, "Paxos Welcomes its First Dedicated Chief Compliance Officer Carolina Ceballos," Paxos, September 8, 2022, https://paxos.com/2022/09/08/paxos-welcomes-its-first-dedicated-chief-compliance-officer-carolina-ceballos/