Citi Director Leaves To Start Own Crypto Company
The former co-head of digital assets said he wanted to assist in the maturation of the crypto market via a new venture
Source: Shutterstock
key takeaways
- Citi’s co-head of digital assets, Alex Kriete, said he was calling it quits at the bank to start up his own crypto venture
- While details are scant, Kriete said more information is to come once his end of employment process is finalized
The co-head of Citi’s wealth management’s (Citi Global Wealth) digital asset group, Alex Kriete, announced Thursday his departure to start a new crypto venture.
Kriete, who spent less than 12 months in his crypto role but 11 years at Citi overall, made the announcement via his LinkedIn page, stating he has decided to take on a new professional “challenge.”
“Unsurprisingly to those who know me, I believe digital assets will continue to grow in importance to global capital markets and the formation of new business models,” Kriete said. “I could not be more excited to assist in the maturation of this market.”
The former Citi employee also said he would be sharing more details on his new venture in the coming weeks following an end of employment process.
Prior to his work in digital assets, Kriete spent over three years as senior vice president and investment counselor at Citi Private Bank and has worked with the company for over a decade.
Kriete’s departure follows on from global co-head of structured products trading Matt Zhang calling it quits in October to start a $1.5 billion venture focused on investing in blockchain and the digital asset ecosystem.
Citi had been on a crypto hiring spree for most of last year in a bid to match efforts made by JPMorgan and Goldman Sachs. The company sought to fill more than 100 positions related to digital assets within the bank’s institutional client group.
The move is part of a larger trend of talent from traditional finance and Big Tech joining companies working in Web3, which refers to decentralized apps that run on a blockchain and allow anyone to participate without companies monetizing their personal data.
Venture capital continues to flow into the industry; the past two weeks alone has seen upwards of $2.34 billion in funding commitments.
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