Crypto hiring: Binance loses exec trio as regulators circle

Binance continues to make headlines — and its staffers are coming and going

article-image

Aleksandr Khmeliov/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

Binance has lost three executives as the exchange has continued to fend off a number of regulatory probes worldwide. 

The people parting ways with Binance include General Counsel Hon Ng, as well as Patrick Hillmann, chief strategy officer, plus Steven Christie, who held the title of senior vice president for compliance, Fortune originally reported.

A former Asia Pacific-based legal executive, Eleanor Hughes has since been elevated to Binance’s open general counsel seat. 

Hillmann on Twitter said he was leaving “on good terms” with Binance, and Christie said he was “simply tired” after spending the last six years working on compliance projects for Kraken and Binance.

Binance didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. 

Shakeups at MicroStrategy, Polygon Labs

MicroStrategy lost Chief Revenue Officer Kevin Adkisson this week.

After working for MicroStrategy for nearly seven years in four different sales positions, Adkisson resigned from the role on Wednesday, according to an SEC filing. He’s set to stay on as an adviser.

MicroStrategy CEO and President Phong Le took over Adkisson’s responsibilities.

Separately, Polygon Labs promoted Marc Boiron from chief legal officer to CEO. Boiron has worked at a number of law firms advising companies about blockchain technology. His most recent gig prior: chief legal officer at crypto trading platform dYdX.

Rebecca Rettig will be taking over as chief legal officer. Rettig joined Polygon this January as chief policy officer. She had that same role at Aave before that and had a brief stint as a board member for Silvergate Bank in March 2022.

Also, Ryan Wyatt will be stepping down as president of Polygon at the end of July to serve in an advisory role.

Other notable hires

  • ETC Group, a European crypto ETP provider, is ditching its co-CEO model. Tim Bevan will take over as the sole chief executive of the company, and Bradley Duke will become chief strategy officer.
  • Hong Kong has recently staffed its Web3 development taskforce it introduced in February. Financial Secretary Paul Chan will chair the group, and Yat Siu of Animoca Brands was appointed to be a member.
  • Galaxy Digital CEO Michael Novogratz said at a conference last month that his and other crypto companies are looking to move employees overseas because of the regulatory environment in the US.

Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Research Report Templates (2).png

Research

We’re bullish on the PUMP token. We believe Pump.fun's brand strength, existing integrations, product roadmap, and strategic levers justify PUMP's TGE valuation, and expect the token to re-rate meaningfully higher in the months ahead.

article-image

The acquisition is Pump.fun’s first, and comes just days before its planned ICO

article-image

As Trump’s tariff war reignites, everyone is assuming the dollar will continue its path lower. But the journey might be bumpy

article-image

A valuation model for “blockchain GDP”

article-image

The mini app combines vibe-coding with a hypercasual game feed and is coming to the new Coinbase Wallet

article-image

An improbable tale of the world’s 40th graphics-chip startup

article-image

The newly announced token will debut in an ICO on Saturday