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You are here: Home / Bitcoin Industry News / Ether-Focused SharpLink Appoints Former BlackRock Executive as Co-CEO

July 25, 2025

Ether-Focused SharpLink Appoints Former BlackRock Executive as Co-CEO

SharpLink Gaming (SBET), the Nasdaq-listed crypto treasury firm that has recently emerged as one of the largest corporate holders of ether (ETH), said on Friday it has appointed former BlackRock executive Joseph Chalom as co-CEO of the firm.

Chalom, who spent two decades at BlackRock in different roles, spearheaded the asset management giant’s foray into digital assets and blockchain initiatives including launching the a spot ETH ETF, the press release said. He also was a board member at tokenization firm Securitize, which issues the largest tokenized U.S. Treasury fund with BlackRock.

“Few executives in the world have had the kind of impact Joseph has had in unlocking institutional adoption of digital assets, having pioneered BlackRock’s strategic entry into the space,” Joseph Lubin, chairman of SharpLink, said in a statement.

SharpLink CEO Robert Pythian will transition to president over the next quarter and remain on the board.

SharpLink pivoted in May to a crypto treasury strategy focusing on Ethereum in May under the leadership of Lubin, who is the co-founder of Ethereum and CEO of Ethereum-focused development firm ConsenSys. Since then, the firm emerged as one of the most aggressive ETH buyers acquiring over $1.3 billion worth of tokens.

SBET shares are lower by 3% early Friday and down 30% over the past five sessions.

Read more: SharpLink’s Ether Bet Surpasses $1.3B After Latest Purchase

Author: Krisztian Sandor

Filed Under: Bitcoin Industry News

Expert Witness

Ty Sagalow head shotTy Sagalow's unique background in legal, underwriting, policy drafting and claims – and his designation as a “qualified insurance expert” by the United States District Court for the Southern District of California – offers attorneys an unparalleled resource in D&O, E&O and Cyber insurance coverage disputes. He was also named "Most Helpful Expert" in a recent $8.7M coverage decision.

Mr. Sagalow served as Chief Underwriting Officer and General Counsel for AIG Executive Liability (formerly National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, PA), the world’s largest carrier of Directors and Officers Liability and Professional Liability Insurance. As General Counsel, Mr. Sagalow personally wrote or led teams that wrote all the D&O policies and many of the professional liability policies that AIG produced between 1988 and 2000 – policies which continue to serve as the foundational wording for the D&O and professional liability policies in the market today. As AIG Executive Liability’s Chief Underwriting Officer, Mr. Sagalow was charged with all underwriting interpretations and decisions for AIG D&O/E&O policies. In 2009, Mr. Sagalow headed up the team that rewrote all D&O policies for Zurich North America.

Ty is a cum laude graduate of Georgetown University Law Center and holds a LLM from New York University School of Law.

Bitcoin Insurance

Combining his talents as a network security insurance expert and an insurance product development expert, Ty Sagalow is the leading expert on the unique risk and insurance needs of the bitcoin industry.

With the successful sale of BitSecure(tm), the first bitcoin theft insurance policy in February of 2015, he is the first to create a sustainable, robust insurance policy to cover the theft of bitcoins and other virtual currency backed by an A-Rated, global “top 10” Property and Casualty insurance company.

Company Profile

Innovation Insurance Group is an insurance consulting firm and insurance brokerage founded by 30-year insurance executive, Ty R. Sagalow, former Chief Underwriting Officer, General Counsel and Chief Innovation Officer at AIG, and former Chief Innovation Officer at Zurich, NA and Tower Group. IIG focuses on three core practice groups: product development, expert witness services (primarily in the Management and Professional Liability areas), and bitcoin industry brokerage services.

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