board of directors

MicroStrategy Announces Plans to Pay Its Board of Directors in Bitcoin

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MicroStrategy business software intelligence company has announced its intentions to begin paying some of its Board directors with Bitcoin.

The Nasdaq-listed firm made its 8-K filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) yesterday and stated that starting from April 11 onwards, its non-employee directors on its board will get all payments for their service in Bitcoin cryptocurrency instead of cash.

Based on the new arrangement, the firm said that compensation fees for its four independent directors will be converted from US dollars into the cryptocurrency at the time of payment via a payment processor and then deposited into the digital wallets of the directors. The move is part of the company’s commitment to Bitcoin given the ability of the crypto asset to serve as a store of value.

MicroStrategy stated:

“In approving Bitcoin as a form of compensation for Board service, the Board cited its commitment to bitcoin given its ability to serve as a store of value, supported by a robust and public open-source architecture, untethered to sovereign monetary policy.”

Bitcoin as A Better Safe-Haven Investment

MicroStrategy started buying Bitcoin in August last year. During that time, MicroStrategy’s CEO Michael Saylor stated that the aim of the company investing in Bitcoin is to maximize long-term value for shareholders. Saylor describes Bitcoin as the best money ever created. Compared to the US dollar and gold, Saylor sees the cryptocurrency as a superior asset for a treasury given that it is not deflationary by design.

In August last year, MicroStrategy became the first publicly traded firm in the US to invest in Bitcoin as part of its capital allocation strategy. So far, the company has bought 90,531 Bitcoins currently worth about $5.5 billion. Such investments reflect the company’s belief that the cryptocurrency is a reliable store of value and an attractive investment asset with long-term appreciation potential rather than holding cash.

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Cathie Wood Joins Amun Crypto Technology Firm's Board

Cathie Wood, a top wall street investor and founder and CEO of ARK Investment management firm, has joined the board of European crypto technology firm Amun Holdings after personally investing in the company owned by 12Shares AG, the issuer of crypto exchange-traded products based in Switzerland.

21Shares AG is the provider of exchange-traded products (ETP) tied to the cryptocurrency market in Switzerland, thus making investing in cryptocurrencies as easy as buying shares using conventional brokers or banks.

Wood talked about her joining the board of Amun Holdings: “I am thrilled to support its efforts. 21Shares is forging a new path for crypto ETPs by leading with research and a keen understanding of this developing asset class.”

21Shares and Amun products are listed on national exchanges in Switzerland, Germany, and Austria, among other locations.

Amun, which is based in Zurich (the capital city in Switzerland), aims to tap Wood’s expertise to expand 21Shares globally. The crypto firm, which earns between $40 million to $50 million per year, aims to enhance retail and institutional accessibility of cryptocurrencies, Amun’s CEO Hany Rashwan said.

Rashwan further revealed that Amun plans to list its first non-Europeans product within the coming months.

The company’s 21Shares Short Bitcoin ETP allows investors to bet against Bitcoin and its 21Shares crypto basket index tracks prices of the leading five crypto assets by market value.

Crypto As a Big Business Opportunity

The move made by Cathie Wood demonstrates how more institutional investors are working to capture the growth of the crypto market. Wood’s funds are vastly involved in the crypto space.

Wood recently made headlines when she invested a total of $246 million of Coinbase shares on April 15, the day when Coinbase Global went public and then bought another one million Coinbase shares worth $580 million the following day. Two months earlier, ARK Invest purchased 7 million shares of Grayscale Bitcoin Trust.

Several firms are increasingly adopting cryptocurrency, either by supporting payments and transfer or actually purchasing the assets.

Forward-thinking firms like Square and Tesla see value in blending crypto assets into their business models. Tesla converted part of its balance sheet cash into Bitcoin earlier this year. Goldman Sachs has introduced a new crypto trading desk and UBS Group, the largest investment bank in Switzerland is in talks to provide crypto investments to its wealthy clients.

Market Reactions to Elon Musk on not Joining the Board of Directors of Twitter

As confirmed by Parag Agrawal, the CEO of Twitter Inc, who announced on Sunday night that Elon Musk, Tesla’s CEO, has decided not to join the social media company’s board. The market has different reactions to Elon Musk’s decision.

Last week on Tuesday, Elon Musk spent $2.8 billion buying a 9.2% stake in social media company Twitter when he purchased 73,486,938 of common stock in the social media company. This purchase made him Twitter’s largest individual shareholder. Shortly afterwards, Twitter announced that the Tesla executive would be taking a seat on the company’s board.

However, in a tweet on Sunday night, Agrawal disclosed: “Elon’s appointment to the board was to become officially effective on April 9, but Elon shared that same morning that he will no longer be joining the board. I believe this is for the best. We have and will always value input from our shareholders whether they are on our Board or not. Elon is our biggest shareholder and we will remain open to his input.”

Neither Agrawal nor Musk disclosed the reason for the rejection.

Both Musk and Twitter’s management team had expressed excitement about the addition of the executive to the board.

Musk has been a free-speech absolutist and a critic of Twitter. When he bought a Twitter stake on April 5, he disclosed plans to bring about significant improvements at the major social media platform.

Some corporate governance experts have tried to explain the reason behind Musk’s decline to join the board, basically pointing to the fact that putting Musk on the Twitter board of directors could have been a way of controlling his influence over the company.

Danni Hewson, a financial analyst at the investment company AJ Bell, explained: “He (Musk) was never going to want to be constrained in the way that Twitter clearly would want to constrain him as a member of the board.”

In a client note, Angelo Zino, a Senior Equity Analyst at CFRA Research, stated: “We had thought the equity cap and board seat was originally intended to handcuff Musk in many respects and think he is unlikely the type of individual who will now just sell his stake and walk away.”

Brian Fitzgerald, Wells Fargo analyst, also elaborated: “I think what he realized is that by being on the board his voice will diminish and that’s absolutely the last thing he wants.”

As part of Musk’s agreement to join the board, he had committed not to acquire more than 14.9% of the company’s shares during his term. Twitter stated in a regulatory filing that it intended to appoint Musk to its board for a term that will end in 2024. But since the deal is no longer there, this leaves the door open for him to take a more aggressive stance by purchasing more of Twitters’ shares.

Musk’s Influence on Crypto Market

The CEO of electric-car maker Tesla has been a staunch backer of crypto coins and often uses Twitter to publicly announce his views on cryptocurrencies. Musk, who has over 55 million followers on social media, his tweets normally impact the crypto market significantly. His witty tweets on cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin and Dogecoin, influence the prices to soar or fall.

In May, his tweet brought the price of Bitcoin down when he announced Tesla will not accept Bitcoins anymore because of the environmental concerns around crypto mining. Bitcoin saw a dramatic fall from $65,000 to the $30,000 level.

Chia Network Appoints Noor Menai to Board of Directors

Public blockchain provider, Chia Network, Inc. (“Chia”), known for its commitment to real-world adoption, announced the election of Noor Menai to its Board of Directors effective from today’s date.

Background on Noor Menai

With an illustrious career spanning over 30 years and three continents, Menai is no stranger to the realms of finance, banking, and technology. Holding the current title of President and CEO of CTBC Bank USA, Menai’s influence extends to the Advisory Board of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Federal Deposit Insurance Company’s Subcommittee for Supervision Modernization.

Menai’s past roles further underscore his expertise. His stints include significant tenures at major banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Citigroup. His association with these institutions witnessed the creation of multiple tech-enabled platforms. Further enhancing his profile, Menai held the title of CEO at Charles Schwab Bank and spent five years immersed in private equity endeavors in the Middle East and Africa.

Educationally, Menai boasts an MBA focusing on finance, computers, and information systems, alongside a bachelor’s degree in the same specialties, both from the University of Rochester. His service extends to academic and philanthropic fronts as well, marking his presence on the Board of Councilors of USC’s Rossier School of Education and the Leadership Council of Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

Comments from Chia and Menai

Gene Hoffman, the CEO and President of Chia Network, lauded Menai’s induction stating, “Noor Menai has deep experience in banking, financial services and technology… We are looking forward to working with Noor and learning from him.”

In response, Menai conveyed his enthusiasm, “I’m thrilled to join Chia’s board. Chia’s technology will enable marketplaces and exchanges, which can only be described as inefficient today. I look forward to joining Chia’s talented and diverse board and leadership team.”

A Brief on Chia Network

Aiming to redefine blockchain technology for practical use, Chia Network stands distinct, thanks to its founder Bram Cohen, the brains behind BitTorrent. The network, through its groundbreaking Proof of Space and Time consensus algorithm, offers a unique blockchain system using hard drive space. This innovation marks the first fresh approach to Nakamoto Consensus since the inception of Bitcoin in 2009.

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OpenAI Expands Board with Tech and Legal Luminaries

OpenAI, the leading artificial intelligence research lab known for its groundbreaking AI models like GPT-4 and DALL·E 3, has recently announced a strategic expansion of its board of directors, adding three high-profile members. This move comes as OpenAI continues to navigate the rapidly evolving landscape of AI technology and its implications for society.

The new board members are Dr. Sue Desmond-Hellmann, a renowned physician and non-profit leader; Nicole Seligman, a respected corporate lawyer with an extensive background in media and technology; and Fidji Simo, a veteran of consumer technology who currently leads Instacart as CEO and Chair. They join existing board members Adam D’Angelo, Larry Summers, and Bret Taylor, along with CEO Sam Altman, who is rejoining the board.

Dr. Desmond-Hellmann brings a wealth of experience from her tenure as CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and her roles on the boards of Pfizer and the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology. Her expertise in healthcare and non-profit leadership will be invaluable as OpenAI explores AI’s potential in these sectors.

Nicole Seligman, who has held leadership positions at Sony, including EVP and General Counsel, and President of Sony Entertainment, adds significant legal and governance experience to the board. Her previous role as a law clerk to Justice Thurgood Marshall on the Supreme Court of the United States also underscores her deep understanding of the legal challenges that emerging technologies like AI might face.

Fidji Simo’s experience in leading operations and product development at Facebook, and now at Instacart, will provide OpenAI with insights into consumer technology and the scaling of tech businesses. Her role on the board of directors at Shopify further highlights her expertise in e-commerce, a sector that is increasingly influenced by AI advancements.

The expansion of OpenAI’s board is a clear indication of the organization’s commitment to responsible AI development and governance. With the addition of these three new members, OpenAI is poised to deepen its understanding of the complex regulatory and ethical landscapes that accompany the rise of AI technologies.

Bret Taylor, Chair of the OpenAI board, expressed his excitement about the new additions, emphasizing that their collective experience and leadership would help guide OpenAI’s growth and mission to ensure that artificial general intelligence benefits all of humanity.

The news of the board expansion is especially significant in the context of the broader AI and blockchain industries. As AI technology becomes increasingly integrated with blockchain and cryptocurrency platforms, the governance decisions made by organizations like OpenAI could have far-reaching implications for how these technologies intersect and evolve.

OpenAI’s commitment to expanding its board with individuals who have a diverse range of expertise reflects the organization’s understanding of the multifaceted challenges and opportunities that AI presents. This strategic decision not only enhances the organization’s governance but also sets a precedent for the industry, underscoring the importance of interdisciplinary leadership in navigating the future of technology.