Bakkt’s parent company, ICE, informed that Mike Blandina would be replaced by the current M&A VP, David Clifton, as the interim CEO, while Adam White will continue to serve as the firm’s president. Blandina had previously worked at companies like Google and Paypal. Mike replaced current Georgia Senator Kelly Loeffler as the CEO of Bakkt at the start of this year. Kelly Loeffler had led Bakkt since its launch back in August 2019 up to December when she was appointed to the US congress as a junior senator for Georgia. She was also picked by US President Trump in the task force responsible for opening the country.
“Clifton will focus on completing the integration of Bridge2 Solutions.”
According to the announcement, David Clifton, during his interim role at Bakkt, would focus on completing the integration of Bridge2 Solutions, which Bakkt acquired earlier this year. He would also be responsible for driving forward Bakkt’s growth initiatives. Some of his notable milestones achieved by David within the firm include a leading role in ICE’s strategic deals such as NYSE Euronext acquisition back in 2013. He has been working with the ICE since 2008.
“Bakkt aims to unlock the value of digital assets by creating a trustworthy ecosystem.”
Jeffrey Sprecher, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of ICE, said that David had been deeply engaged in many of the most important initiatives over the years and, after helping to lead the acquisition of Bridge2 to accelerate the rollout of Bakkt’s consumer application. “I know he will provide outstanding leadership for Bakkt as its Interim CEO,” he added. ICE chairman also expressed gratitude to Mike Blandina for his work to help grow Bakkt during an important transformational period and wished him luck for his new endeavor, which was not mentioned.
Bakkt aims to unlock the value of digital assets by creating a trustworthy ecosystem. The firm also completed a series B funding led by the ICE in March 2020, which saw them raise an additional $300 million capital.
