Surprise over the billionaire divorce of the founder of Solana

Stephen Akridge, co-founder of Solana, allegedly withheld millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies from his ex-wife, according to a lawsuit she filed in a California state court.

Stephen Akridge, co-founder of Solana, allegedly withheld millions of dollars in cryptocurrencies from his ex-wife, according to a lawsuit she filed in a California state court.

Elisa Rossi, an Italian citizen now living in Rome, and Akridge were married for nearly 10 years.

The couple had amassed a significant amount of wealth and assets during their marriage, largely due to Akridge's role in founding Solana Labs, the company that created the Solana blockchain, according to the lawsuit.

In 2023, the couple filed for divorce, according to state court records. In her lawsuit, Rossi claims that the divorce was "bitter and prolonged."

As part of the divorce settlement, she was entitled to a portion of the couple's SOL tokens. The cryptocurrency now has a market value of $90 billion, according to CoinGecko.

Rossi's Solana tokens were staked, which is when cryptocurrencies are held in custody to secure a blockchain. In exchange for not moving their cryptocurrencies, depositors receive interest.

Rossi claims that although Akridge appeared to give her control of her portion of Solana, he did not give her the staking rewards, which amounted to millions of dollars.

The lawsuit outlines the specific amounts that Akridge allegedly withheld from Rossi.

The lawsuit against Akridge is a rare glimpse into the finances of a co-founder of one of the most important cryptocurrencies in the market.

Akridge is not as visible as Anatoly Yakavenko or Raj Gokal, the other two co-founders of Solana Labs.

Still, he was a key stakeholder who parted ways with Solana Labs in January to launch Anza, a Solana software developer, along with half of Solana Labs' staff. In October,