Galaxy Digital CTO Out at Novogratz-Led Crypto Fund

Mike McMahon, chief technology officer at crypto merchant bank Galaxy Digital, has left the firm, CoinDesk has learned.

“I have already left Galaxy Digital and looking for my next opportunity,” he told CoinDesk Wednesday, declining to provide further details.

Galaxy didn’t respond to CoinDesk’s request for comment by press time, but it’s actively looking for McMahon’s replacement, according to a new job posting on LinkedIn.

The CTO should, among other things, “build, coach and provide hands-on leadership to the technology team” an “build a strong partnership with the business to ensure technology is supporting revenue-generating, client-facing business initiatives.”

McMahon joined Galaxy a year ago following a career at traditional financial institutions and mainstream companies, including Bank of New York-Mellon, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs, according to his LinkedIn profile.

He also spent more than two years at ENSO Financial Analytics, a fintech company owned by Chicago futures exchange operator CME Group.

Galaxy Digital, founded by former hedge fund manager Michael Novogratz, is one of the most active investors in crypto startups. In recent months, it backed staking startup Bison Trails and crypto analytics firm CipherTrace.

In January, Galaxy announced it had raised $250 million to “offer loans in U.S. dollars to struggling crypto firms.” Before that, Novogratz signaled his own confidence in the enterprise despite the bear market when he bought 2.7 percent of Galaxy’s shares, increasing his total stake to about 79.3 percent.

Although based in New York, Galaxy Digital is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange’s TSX Venture Exchange, where it went public via a reverse merger with a pharmaceutical company.

Image of Mike Novogratz via CoinDesk archives