Ark Invest’s Crypto Head Calls It Quits

Yassine Elmandjra, Director of Digital Assets at Ark Investment Management, is leaving the firm after six and a half years.

Elmandjra said that words could not express his "gratitude" to Ark CEO Cathie Wood and the entire team for all of his experiences during his stint at the firm.

Chris Burniske, partner at Placeholder, was Ark's original cryptocurrency lead. He spearheaded the strategy, product development and research around cryptocurrencies after the investment firm was launched in 2014. 

Wood, former chief investment officer (CIO) at global asset management firm AllianceBernstein, founded Ark after her idea of launching ETFs based on cutting-edge innovation being too risky. 

Wood's newly launched firm started focusing on various disruptive technologies, such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, CRISPR gene editing and electric vehicles. 

After Burniske helped to put Ark on the crypto map, Elmandjra then blazed the trail and built one of the best cryptocurrency teams in the industry, according to Wood. 

"I will miss Yassine and his brilliant mind day to day, but look forward to supporting his next big chapter!" she said on social media. 

Ark Invest reached the peak of its popularity in 2021 when it reached a whopping $50 billion in assets under management. However, it has managed to retain only a portion of its AUM. 

Last year, Ark Invest launched Bitcoin and Ethereum spot ETFs in the U.S. 

Coinbase (COIN) is also one of the top holdings in the ARK Innovation ETF, with an 8.29% weighting. 

Last year, Wood predicted that the price of Bitcoin could hit $1.5 million by 2030.