departure

Trent.eth, a member of the Ethereum Foundation, posted on the X platform stating that he is no longer serving at EF as of last Friday. He expressed respect for the partnership with the team over the past five years in network upgrades and funding support work.Trent Van Epps also stated that he will continue to participate in the Protocol Guild and work related to the political economy of Ethereum as long as funding allows.

According to a social media disclosure by Dana Hou, an investment partner at YZI Labs, she has concluded her nearly four-year tenure at YZI Labs (formerly Binance Labs).In her farewell letter, Dana Hou reflected on four major highlights of her work: collaborating and learning alongside partners such as CZ and He Yi; supporting multiple teams including Pendle, Ethena, and Particle Network; facilitating the integration of the Jackson team into Binance Wallet; and working with several talented investors.Dana Hou stated that her belief in the crypto industry remains unchanged, asserting that Bitcoin is still a store of value, cryptocurrencies as an asset class will continue to exist, and blockchain as an open and borderless infrastructure will provide more efficient financial channels and universally accessible on-chain asset services. She expressed her intention to continue monitoring industry developments and firmly believes that "blockchain can function and thrive without permission."It is reported that before joining Binance, Dana Hou worked at Alibaba and Kuaishou, and was also a macro strategist at Goldman Sachs.

According to market news, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde is considering stepping down before her term ends in October 2027, so that French President Macron and German Chancellor Merz can reach an agreement on her successor before the French elections in April 2027.A spokesperson for the European Central Bank later responded that Lagarde is "fully focused on her mission and has not made any decisions regarding the end of her term." Lagarde's potential early departure comes at a critical time for the advancement of the digital euro by the European Central Bank. Under her leadership, the European Central Bank has been continuously advancing the preparations for the digital euro and has repeatedly emphasized the need to manage the risks of private digital currencies such as stablecoins within the framework of the EU's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation.Lagarde herself has long held a critical stance towards cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, describing them as "highly speculative," "worthless," and "not backed by any underlying assets." If there is a change in the leadership of the European Central Bank, it could affect the institution's communication focus and priorities regarding the digital euro, stablecoin regulation, and crypto-related payment arrangements, although the overall regulatory direction has already been established at the EU level.

Co-founder of Multicoin Capital, Kyle Samani, announced on social media that he has decided to step down from Multicoin Capital and will continue to serve as the chairman of Forward Industries (the largest SOL treasury company).As part of the redemption request planned to be submitted to the Multicoin main fund, he will apply for a physical redemption in the form of FWDI stock and warrants, rather than cash in USD, depending on Multicoin's subsequent decisions, legal and compliance approvals, and the independent consent of Forward. Kyle expressed mixed feelings about saying goodbye, as his time at Multicoin has been one of the most meaningful and rewarding experiences of his life. Nevertheless, he looks forward to taking a break and exploring new directions in the tech field.Kyle Samani is one of the most influential investors in the cryptocurrency space. Since its founding in 2017, Multicoin has become one of the most successful crypto-focused funds, managing billions of dollars. Multicoin is one of the most well-known early institutional investors in Solana, heavily investing in the seed/early stages and steadfastly holding during the extreme situation when Solana plummeted over 90% after the FTX collapse.Kyle is one of the investors in the crypto space who loves to write long articles, and the "three mega theses" proposed by him and the Multicoin team have influenced a generation of practitioners' understanding of the intrinsic value of crypto. Forward Industries will completely pivot to the crypto space in September 2025 through a $1.65 billion PIPE (private investment in public equity), led by crypto giants such as Multicoin Capital, Jump Crypto, and Galaxy Digital, with Kyle Samani personally adding $25 million and serving as chairman.According to the latest report, as of January 15, 2026, the publicly listed Solana treasury company Forward Industries holds a total of 6,979,967.46 SOL, far exceeding other competitors, and has staked almost all SOL since establishing the Solana treasury, earning 133,450 SOL in staking rewards.

a16z Crypto partner Arianna Simpson announced on the X platform that she is leaving the renowned crypto investment firm to establish a new fund, aiming to expand her investment scope and cover various verticals. She especially thanked a16z Crypto founder and managing partner Chris Dixon for his long-term guidance, stating that his investment framework will continue to influence her career. In response, Chris Dixon revealed that Arianna Simpson is an early supporter of cryptocurrency, has experience in founding a cryptocurrency fund, and has worked at a16z Crypto for six years, making several successful investments.

a16z Crypto partner Arianna Simpson announced on the X platform that she is leaving the renowned crypto investment firm to establish a new fund, aiming to expand her investment scope and cover various verticals. She especially thanked a16z Crypto founder and managing partner Chris Dixon for his long-term guidance, stating that his investment framework will continue to influence her career.According to Chris Dixon's response, Arianna Simpson is an early supporter of cryptocurrency, has experience founding a cryptocurrency fund, and has worked at a16z Crypto for six years, making several successful investments.

According to Decrypt, Etherealize co-founder Danny Ryan stated that the crypto industry needs to "prove its worth" before Trump leaves office to avoid facing policy reversals after future government changes.He pointed out that the current U.S. government is pushing for legislation and regulatory improvements that support crypto, but this environment will not last forever. Therefore, the industry should expedite the implementation of systems and integration with capital markets.Ryan mentioned that if crypto cannot demonstrate its practical use during the current administration, future political forces may reevaluate the policy support. He emphasized that now is the industry's "window of opportunity" to make crypto a part of the financial system, rather than waiting for political changes to bring uncertainty.

Nick Martitsch, the Head of Market Development at the crypto venture capital firm Paradigm, announced that this week will be his last week working at Paradigm after building and advancing the GTM (Go-To-Market) function for three years.ChainCatcher previously reported that Paradigm General Partner Charlie Noyes announced he has resigned from his position but will continue to participate in Kalshi affairs as a board observer alongside Paradigm founder Matt Huang, and will also provide support to Paradigm's portfolio companies and founders.

ChainCatcher news, according to FORTUNE CRYPTO, Stripe's head of crypto business John Egan announced his departure and will join Polygon Labs as Chief Product Officer (CPO) on Tuesday.Egan has led several significant crypto acquisitions and initiatives at Stripe, including the $1.1 billion acquisition of the stablecoin startup Bridge (completed in February this year), the acquisition of the crypto wallet company Privy, and the collaboration with Paradigm to develop its own blockchain, Tempo.He stated that he chose to join Polygon because he is optimistic about its leading position in stablecoin micropayments. According to data from Artemis Analytics, in July this year, there were 4.5 million active addresses on Polygon using stablecoins for transactions, surpassing Ethereum's 2.9 million, bringing users closer to "daily payment" scenarios.

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi Data, Pepperstone's Chris Weston pointed out that the resignation of Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba shifts the focus to his successor and what this might mean for political stability. The market will weigh the extent of additional fiscal measures and budgets under the new leadership. "The degree of fiscal stimulus is crucial for controlling the rise of long-term Japanese government bonds."He stated that these developments could be seen as another reason to delay the Bank of Japan's next 25 basis point rate hike until 2026. This expectation has already been reflected in the market, with swap traders anticipating only a 12 basis point hike by December. Weston noted that this is another reason why few are willing to hold the yen at present. He expects the yen's weakness in the Asian market to become widespread.

ChainCatcher news, according to Protos, the post-war plan being developed by the Trump administration shows that the United States may offer digital tokens to Palestinians in exchange for their "voluntary" departure from the land of Gaza. The plan is called the "GREAT Trust Proposal," which aims to redevelop vacant land into several large projects, including six to eight "AI-driven smart cities," an "Elon Musk Smart Manufacturing Zone," and a "Trump Riviera" inspired by Dubai's artificial Palm Islands.Those who agree to exchange land for tokens will be allowed to return to Gaza 10 years after the reconstruction is completed and exchange tokens for ownership of the reconstructed housing. The plan also involves creating a blockchain-based land registry for Gaza, selling and distributing tokens to investors, and ultimately seeing the tokenization rights of Gaza land in the secondary market.

ChainCatcher news, according to The Block, U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission Commissioner Kristin Johnson announced she will officially resign next week, leaving only one leader in the commission. Johnson has set September 3 as her last day in office, having previously expressed her intention to leave, marking the latest case in a high-profile exodus from the derivatives regulatory agency.Johnson is one of four commissioners who have announced their departure or have already left since the beginning of this year. Since taking office, President Trump has been committed to bringing pro-cryptocurrency Republican leaders into his administration.

ChainCatcher news, Mary-Catherine Lader announced the end of her four-year term as President and Chief Operating Officer at Uniswap, and will begin a new venture.Lader reflected on her career since starting the digital asset business at BlackRock in 2015, and stated that her collaboration with Uniswap founder Hayden Adams was a "fantastic adventure."

ChainCatcher news, a former employee of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) stated in an interview after leaving that with Musk's departure from the Trump administration, the government efficiency enhancement project he led is likely to stagnate. The Tesla CEO announced on Wednesday evening the end of his special government employee status but insisted that DOGE would continue to operate. However, insiders revealed that this department, which vowed to cut $2 trillion in federal spending, has actually saved only about $175 billion, and the statistics are riddled with flaws.Software engineer Sahil Lavi, who worked at DOGE for nearly two months, predicted that the department would quickly "wave the white flag." "It's like the dying gasp of a struggle," Lavi, who was fired earlier this month, told Reuters, "the core appeal of this project is Musk himself." He expects DOGE employees to "gradually stop showing up, just like kids joining a startup that will go under after four months."

ChainCatcher news, according to Jinshi reports, U.S. White House officials stated that the news of Musk leaving the government is true, and his departure process will begin tonight local time.

ChainCatcher message, Musk posted on X, "As my time as a special government employee is coming to an end, I want to thank President Trump for giving me this opportunity to cut wasteful spending. The mission of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) will only strengthen over time, as it will become a way of life for the entire government."

ChainCatcher news, according to a report by Fox Business Channel reporter, Tesla CEO Elon Musk may indicate when he will leave the "Department of Government Efficiency" (DOGE) during the earnings call following the announcement of the latest quarterly results on Tuesday.Previously, Musk and the White House denied reports that he would leave the agency, but insisted that his tenure there is temporary.

ChainCatcher news, today Blockworks reported that Movement co-founder Rushi Manche has temporarily left the company, and multiple sources revealed that Rushi's personal account was once removed from the company's Slack group.In response, Rushi posted several updates on X to refute the rumors, first sharing a screenshot to prove he is still in the company Slack group, and then stating that his absence from internal meetings was due to attending an event in Asia. Rushi also criticized Blockworks for their unethical false reporting.

ChainCatcher news, a report released by Standard Chartered Bank regarding Ripple-related tokens indicates that XRP could rise to $12.50 before President Trump leaves office.Standard Chartered Bank predicts that by the end of this year, XRP will reach $5.50, by the end of 2026 it will reach $8, by the end of 2027 it will reach $10.40, and by the end of 2028 it will reach $12.50.