Brendan Blumer
Brendan Blumer (born on August 8, 1986), is the Founder and CEO of Block.one. Block.one is a tech company that is responsible for creating the EOSIO blockchain platform and the EOS coin. Apart from Block.one, Brendan has also founded other companies, including ii5[15][15] - a real estate company, and Okay.com[14] - Hong Kong's Trusted Property Agency. [4][5][6]
Early Life
Blumer was born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. At the age of 15, he developed a website named Gamecliff (stylized as GaMeCliff), which sold virtual assets like avatars, weapons, and houses for MMORPGs (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-playing Games) like EverQuest and World of Warcraft. [7]
Career
In 2001, Brendan Blumer founded Gamecliff, a website that sold virtual assets. In 2005, the company was acquired by IGE (Internet Gaming Entertainment), owned by Brock Pierce. After the acquisition, the company relocated to Hong Kong to oversee Gamecliff's operations. [7][8]
In 2007, Blumer founded The Accounts Network, a company that sold in-game MMORPG avatars and reached more than $1 million monthly in revenues. [8]
In 2009, Brendan Blumer launched Okay.com[14], an enterprise data-sharing platform for real estate brokers in Asia. In 2011, Okay.com merged with the real estate company Asia Pacific Properties, an established leader in residential brokerage. [8][9]
In 2013, Brendan founded ii5[15], a company also focused on real estate and dedicated to real estate listings in India. [4][15]
Block.one
In 2016, Brendan Blumer met Dan Larimer, and together they founded Block.one. Block.one is a company that creates decentralized applications and offers open-source software that enables building decentralized applications on top of the EOS blockchain. In June 2017, the company launched its initial coin offering (ICO) and raised over $4 billion by offering EOS tokens to the public. [4][6]
As the CEO of Block.one, Brendan is responsible for developing the company's core technology, building strategic partnerships, and expanding into new markets. He also oversees the development of products and services for Block.one. [6]
Bullish
Bullish, a subsidiary of Block.one, is a cryptocurrency exchange that was launched in 2021 with the backing of billionaire investor Peter Thiel and hedge fund managers Alan Howard and Louis Bacon. Brendan Blumer serves as the Chairman of the company. [19][20]
At Bullish launch in May 2021, Brendan Blumer shared a few insights about Bullish being beneficial to its parent company on the website, saying:
"The Bullish exchange will leverage blockchain technology and a new market architecture to revolutionize the high-performance trading landscape by transparently automating expensive third-party functions and turning them into yield-generating portfolio management tools to offer institutions and individuals better and safer access to the latest cryptocurrency investment strategies"[25]
In a December 22, 2022 announcement, Bullish said it had reached a mutual agreement with Far Peak Acquisition Corporation, (NYSE: FPAC), a special purpose acquisition company, to no longer merge in a deal that would have seen it listed on the New York Stock Exchange. Bullish Chair Brendan Blumer cited the United States Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) in the company's decision not to move forward:
“Our quest to become a public company is taking longer than expected, but we respect the SEC’s ongoing work to lay new digital asset frameworks and clarify industry-specific disclosure and accounting complexities.”[21]
The original special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) deal in July 2021 specified that either company would have the right to terminate the agreement if transactions weren’t in order by Dec. 31, 2022. [22]
“Given the time constraints and market conditions, Far Peak does not intend to seek a new merger partner and will instead focus on winding up either on March 7, 2023 or sooner if practicable,” said Bullish. [22]
Bullish Acquires Coindesk
On November 20, 2023, Bullish Global, the parent company of Bullish completed the acquisition of CoinDesk, a digital media company that focuses on the blockchain and cryptocurrency industries. Bullish bought 100% of CoinDesk from crypto-focused investor Digital Currency Group (DCG) in an all-cash deal. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. [23][24]
"Bullish has acquired @CoinDesk, which will operate as an independent subsidiary and retain editorial independence. Bullish will immediately inject capital into several of CoinDesk’s most exciting growth initiatives which will power the launch of new services, events and products" - the Bullish team tweeted[23]
Silvergate Purchase
Brendan Blumer bought 9.3% of cryptocurrency bank Silvergate Capital (SI)[10], while Block.one bought an additional 7.5%, according to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) documents filed on November 23, 2022. The purchase made Blumer the largest shareholder of Silvergate. [12][13]
"We believe Silvergate’s current equity prices do not accurately reflect their strong balance sheet, their strategic positioning, or their market-defiant growth trajectory, and therefore offers a unique investment opportunity. We are excited to be a new passive shareholder." - Block.one wrote in a press release. [11]
In March 2023, Block.one sold and exited its entire equity position in Silvergate Capital Corp (NASDAQ: SI) after Silvergate Bank failed to file its annual report on time. [16][17]
“While we are disappointed with this outcome, we remain unwavering that banks and other financial institutions embracing the digital asset and cryptocurrency sectors are well-positioned to use technology to advance the capabilities of both the traditional financial services and the new burgeoning digital asset economy to better serve the needs of the public,” - a Block.one press release said.[16]
Blumer lost at least $74 million personally after Silvergate Bank collapsed, having spent over $90 million to buy 9.27% of Silvergate stock. [18]
