Main navigation

BREAKING: Bitcoin Advocate Michael Saylor to Step Down as MicroStrategy CEO

Tue, 08/02/2022 - 20:19
article image
Alex Dovbnya
Phong Le will replace Michael Saylor as the company's new CEO
BREAKING: Bitcoin Advocate Michael Saylor to Step Down as MicroStrategy CEO
Cover image via stock.adobe.com
Read U.TODAY on
Google News

Michael Saylor is stepping down as CEO of MicroStrategy, the business intelligence firm he co-founded in 1989.   

Saylor will assume the role of an executive chairman, focusing more on the company's Bitcoin acquisition strategy and other initiatives related to the largest cryptocurrency.      

The Bitcoin advocate has handed over the baton to top executive Phong Le, who has served as the company's president since July 2020. Le says that he's "honored" and "excited" to be at the helm of the organization.   

Saylor believes that splitting the roles of CEO and Chairman will make it possible for the company to pursue its core corporate strategies in a more efficient way. He has been the head of MicroStrategy for more than three decades, going through a series of ups and downs.

In 2000, Saylor famously lost $6 billion in a single day after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission brought charges against his company. His company managed to capture the spotlight after adopting Bitcoin as its reserve asset in a surprise move in August 2020.       

Related
Cardano (ADA) Staking Now Supported by This Swiss Bank
MicroStrategy is the largest corporate holder of the top cryptocurrency. In June, the firm bought $10 million worth of Bitcoin despite facing a reckoning due to falling prices. 

Saylor has repeatedly defended the company's Bitcoin-accumulating strategy after his audacious bet backfired. MicroStrategy's crypto-related losses topped a whopping $1 billion in June. 

The shares of the company are down 2% in after-hours trading following the announcement.   

article image
About the author

Alex Dovbnya (aka AlexMorris) is a cryptocurrency expert, trader and journalist with extensive experience of covering everything related to the burgeoning industry — from price analysis to Blockchain disruption. Alex authored more than 1,000 stories for U.Today, CryptoComes and other fintech media outlets. He’s particularly interested in regulatory trends around the globe that are shaping the future of digital assets, can be contacted at alex.dovbnya@u.today.