Bakkt Announces CEO Transition Amid Shift to ‘Pure-Play Crypto Infrastructure Company’

Bakkt announced a leadership transition Monday (Aug. 11) as it reported its results for the quarter ended June 30 and outlined its progress in its transition into a “pure-play crypto infrastructure company.”

Andy Main stepped down as co-CEO and director, effective Monday, while former co-CEO Akshay Naheta became Bakkt’s sole CEO, the provider of solutions for the crypto economy said in a Monday earnings release. Main will become an advisor to Bakkt.

The company said in the release that the leadership transition “reflects the natural progression of Bakkt’s transformation into a pure-play crypto infrastructure company.”

Main said Monday during the company’s quarter earnings call that he was stepping down after helping to strategically realign Bakkt since March 2024 by, among other things, exiting non-core businesses and refocusing on crypto.

Naheta said during the call that he will build on the foundation created by this restructuring to “unlock the next phase of growth for Bakkt as a leading global crypto infrastructure platform.”

The company is focused on enhancing its “brokerage-in-a-box” solution, launching its stablecoin payments solution and expanding its bitcoin treasury initiative, Naheta said.

The adoption of digital assets in global finance will create a $760 trillion total addressable market (TAM) that includes global real estate, global bonds, global equities and other components, Bakkt said in a presentation released Monday.

During Bakkt’s previous earnings call, which was held May 12, the company said it was shifting away from its earlier multi-pronged approach to crypto and loyalty services and repositioning itself as a leaner, more nimble company focused on global digital payments and regulated crypto trading.

Since then, the company updated its corporate investment policy to allow it to allocate capital into bitcoin and other digital assets; announced the signing of a definitive agreement to sell its loyalty business; reported that it closed a $75 million public offering and planned use the net proceeds to purchase bitcoin and other digital assets as well as for working capital and general corporate purposes; and plans to kick off its multinational bitcoin treasury strategy by becoming the largest shareholder in Tokyo-listed company MarushoHotta.

Naheta said Monday during the earnings call: “We are still in the early stages of a generational shift in what money is, how money moves and how markets operate and trade. I’m excited to lean back into this exciting global trend of digital assets as we unlock long-term value for our shareholders through our differentiated position as a pure-play crypto infrastructure company.”