Greg Solano announced on April 16, 2026, that Michael Figge would become Yuga Labs' next chief executive1. Figge had worked at the company since 2021, he told The Block2. Solano, a Yuga Labs co-founder, moved into the role of chairman of the board on April 16 as well.
The second CEO appointment at Yuga Labs on the record since 2024
Leadership moves CryptoLately has verified at Yuga Labs, by year
- 2026: 2
- 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 |
|---|---|
| 2022 | 1 |
| 2023 | 2 |
| 2024 | 3 |
| 2025 | 0 |
| 2026 | 2 |
18 CEO appointments on the record in 2026 so far
CEO appointments CryptoLately has verified, by year; 2026 through Oct. 2, 2026
- 2026: 18
- 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 | 8 |
| 2020 | 7 |
| 2021 | 6 |
| 2022 | 18 |
| 2023 | 17 |
| 2024 | 26 |
| 2025 | 35 |
| 2026 | 18 |
The move
Solano made the announcement himself, under the header "Some news to share." He wrote, “After serving as CEO the past couple years, I'm moving into the role of Chairman of the Board, and @mfigge will become Yuga's next CEO. Figge is the absolute best person for the job. There's no one I trust more to lead Yuga through this next chapter”1. He credited Figge's recent work on Otherside, the company's metaverse project, calling it proof of his ability to turn a vision into something real.
Figge posted his own statement on April 16, 2026. “With Otherside, we're developing a world class social platform for digital ownership and crypto,” he wrote2. “People will explore Otherdeeds, compete for resources, and build their own experiences,” he added, naming user growth as the goal. He told The Block he had already been chief executive for a few weeks by the time of the public announcement.
Before and after the handoff
Figge joined Yuga Labs in 2021, he told The Block2. Solano had led Yuga Labs for about two years, having returned as chief executive on February 21, 2024, when he replaced Daniel Alegre, The Block noted in its report on the Figge appointment. He told followers he planned to shift his own focus to "creative direction, writing, and figuring out insane ideas," the work he said he did best1.
What to watch
Figge's own post named user growth on Otherside as the test of his tenure, so the next evidence worth checking is Otherside's user base and the pace of its promised feature rollout2. Watch, too, whether BAYC floor prices and Yuga Labs' product cadence shift now that the company has its third chief executive since Nicole Muniz left in December 2022.
Sources
- Greg Solano, post on X, April 16, 2026, https://x.com/CryptoGarga/status/2044856475244286172
- RT Watson, "Bored Apes-creator Yuga Labs taps new CEO as Greg Solano moves to chairman role," The Block, April 16, 2026, https://www.theblock.co/post/397818/bored-apes-creator-yuga-labs-taps-new-ceo-greg-solano-chairman