Messari founder Ryan Selkis has stepped down as CEO after some strong political tweets
Photo by Benjamin Garrett, Getty Images.
Key receivers
Ryan Selkis resigned as CEO of Messari after his tweets about Trump opponents sparked controversy. Eric Turner has been named Messari's interim CEO following Selkis' resignation.
Share this article
Ryan Selkis, the co-founder and CEO of crypto analytics firm Messari, has resigned following a series of tweets that incited civil war and spewed anti-immigration rhetoric. The move comes after Selkis made several controversial posts on social media X.
In a recent political speech, Selkis announced his resignation on Friday, saying the Messari team had “fallen into disrepute” for the first time in the company's 6.5-year history.
Selkis told Messari that he would move into a senior advisory position focusing on long-term strategy. A day before Selkis announced his resignation, crypto industry legend Molly White collected some of the tweets in a thread, his profile of political changes making the rounds among crypto journalists and the community.
The former CEO's social media activity has escalated since the assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump. Selkis posted that anyone who opposes Trump “could die by fire” and called for a “war of words.” He later wrote that it was necessary to “remove, if necessary, the metastatic cancer and the evil of the left.”
Selkis faced criticism for saying, “I hope we send you again,” to X, a green card holder, during an online exchange. He later said this comment was taken out of context from a longer thread.
“This is something that makes sense for him and it makes sense for the company,” Eric Turner, Mesari's chief revenue officer, said in an interview. “As usual, Ryan's Twitter and public persona are not representative of Messari […] It's business as usual for us at the company.
In the wake of the controversy, Messari's leadership conducted what Selkies described as “tough love” with him. The company announced that Turner will serve as interim CEO when Selkis steps down.
Share this article
