Michael Gronager, co-founder and longtime CEO of crypto analytics heavyweight Chainalysis, has stepped down as the company’s top executive.
“I look forward to watching and cheering for the ongoing success of Chainalysis for many years to come,” he said in a statement.
Jonathan Levin, co-founder and former chief strategy officer, is now CEO, the company said in a press release.
Paul Auvil, who serves on the boards of three other companies, including AI chipmaker Cerebras, will be independent director of Chainalysis’ board.
The leadership shakeup at Chainalysis follows Gronager’s extended absence at the analytics company.
Since September 25, he has been on leave for what he said were “personal issues,” The Block first reported.
From early October until December 3, when Levin was appointed top executive, Sari Granat, Chainalysis’ president and chief operating officer, acted as interim CEO.
A spokesman for Chainalysis confirmed to DL News that Gronager was on personal leave and that Granat led the company in his absence.
When asked why Gronager stepped down, the spokesman said it was a “joint decision” between Gronager and Chainalysis’ board and is “unrelated to the organisational strategy, financial strength, client success or the long-term outlook of Chainalysis.”
He declined to provide more details about what prompted Gronager’s replacement.
Competitive markets
Levin’s new appointment comes amid heightened competition for the analytics heavyweight.
One of the first firms to sell its blockchain analytics technology to governments and banks, Chainalysis rode the rise in the crypto market to a valuation of $8.6 billion as of its last funding round in 2022.
However, since its rise to prominence, new startups have challenged the analytics heavyweight.
In 2021, Elliptic raised $60 million from a slew of big-name investors, including JP Morgan and SoftBank.
And, in 2022, TRM Labs raised $70 million from the likes of Goldman Sachs and Brevan Howard.
In a September interview with DL News, just one week before he went on personal leave, Gronager said that Chainalysis’ first-mover advantage is hard for competitors to beat.
The company has amassed large datasets over its more-than-decade of operations. This creates a moat against rivals, as more data means more granular and accurate analysis, he said.
Only public agencies or private sector companies for whom Chainalysis hasn’t worked — and on whom it hasn’t compiled data — are potential targets for competitors, he said.
“But again, that competitor would not be able to sell into our markets, and we wouldn’t sell into theirs,” he said.
Ben Weiss is DL News’ Dubai Correspondent. Got a tip? Email him at bweiss@dlnews.com.