Digital Asset Holdings has named a new chief executive officer, just three months after its former CEO stepped down for “personal reasons.”
The firm announced Tuesday that it has appointed Yuval Rooz, its co-founder, as the CEO. Rooz previously worked as the firm’s chief financial officer and most recently was serving as its chief operating officer.
“Along with the rest of the board, I feel very strongly that Yuval’s strategic agility, business acumen, mission-driven orientation, and deep belief in our people and products make him uniquely qualified to lead Digital Asset successfully into the future,” said AG Gangadhar, the firm’s executive chairman, in a statement.
Rooz founded Digital Asset in 2014 alongside Shaul Kfir, its chief technology officer, and Eric Saraniecki, the firm’s head of product, the announcement said. The company is a digital ledger technology firm that services large financial institutions, its website says.
As the firm’s chief operating officer, Rooz oversaw the acquisition of four startups, according to Digital Asset’s announcement. He also built up partnerships with clients and partners like the Australian Securities Exchange, the announcement said.
“I’ve been with the company since the start and know our growth is built on a bedrock of smart technology, talented people, and strong relationships with clients and partners,” Rooz said via email Tuesday. “In the next year, you will see us working more closely with technology and software integration partners, with which in many cases, established relationships exist but we haven’t talked about solutions we can provide together.”
While working on Digital Asset, Rooz founded a real estate app called Hesta Home that was acquired in 2017, his LinkedIn profile shows.
Rooz managed algorithmic trading at DRW Holdings prior to his role at Digital Asset, the announcement said. He helped DRW launch its venture capital firm when he was there, the announcement said.
He began his finance career at Citadel, working on global equities, his LinkedIn profile shows.
“Yuval has helped build Digital Asset from the ground up and has the strategic vision, deep industry relationships, and technical expertise to continue growing the business and driving innovation in the development of distributed ledger solutions,” said Michael Bodson, a Digital Asset board member, in a statement.
[II Deep Dive: Blythe Masters Resigns as Digital Asset CEO for ‘Personal Reasons’]
Blythe Masters, the firm’s former chief executive officer, stepped down in December 2018.
AG Gangadhar, a board member at the firm who was named chairman in December, took the helm as interim chief executive officer. He will continue to advise the company as executive chairman, according to Digital Asset’s announcement.
According to a spokesperson, Digital Asset plans to find a new chief operating officer “in the near term.”
