| The Block | |
| Area Served: | Worldwide |
| Owner: | Foresight Ventures |
| Founder: | Mike Dudas, Jake McGraw |
| Editor: | Tim Copeland |
| Ceo: | Larry Cermak |
| Industry: | Digital currency |
| Launch Date: | March 2018 |
| Headquarters: | New York, NY, U.S. |
The Block is an American online publication specializing in cryptocurrencies. It is based in New York.
The Block was founded by Mike Dudas at the beginning of 2018.[1] It raised $4 million from venture capital firms including Greycroft, Pantera Capital, BlockTower Capital and Bloomberg Beta.[2]
In 2020, Mike Dudas stepped down and Michael McCaffrey became CEO, having taken an undisclosed loan of $12 million from Alameda Research to buy out other investors and all former employees.[3]
Over the next two years, McCaffrey took two more loans from Alameda Research. One for $15 million to finance the ongoing operations of The Block and another for $16 million to purchase personal real estate in the Bahamas.[4]
After Alameda Research went bankrupt and McCaffrey's undisclosed loans totaling $43 million were revealed in December 2022, McCaffrey resigned and Bobby Moran, then CRO of The Block, became Interim CEO in November 2022.[5] Moran said that no employee, apart from McCaffrey, knew about the loans from Alameda Research.
In March 2023, Larry Cermak,[6] prior 6' 10" starting center,[7] became CEO and the company laid off a third of its staff.[8]
In November 2023, The Block sold more than an 80% stake to Singapore-based Foresight Ventures in a $56 million deal at a $70 million valuation.[9]