Stamford-based Digital Currency Group (DCG) has sold its cryptocurrency-focused media company subsidiary CoinDesk to Bullish, a crypto exchange run by former New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley. The financial aspects of the deal were not made public.
Last year, CoinDesk was the first media outlet to report on the irregularities within Sam Bankman-Fried’s business operations that ultimately plunged his FTX crypto exchange into bankruptcy and led to his arrest on multiple fraud charges. According to a Wall Street Journal report, CoinDesk will operate as an independent subsidiary within Bullish and its management team will remain in place, although a new editorial committee will be created to ensure CoinDesk retains its independent focus. Matt Murray, a former editor in chief of The Wall Street Journal, was named chairman of the new committee.
DCG acquired CoinDesk in 2016 for $500,000. During 2022, CoinDesk generated $50 million in revenue, but this year the company hit a rough patch – it began exploring a potential sale in January and laid off 16% of its internal staff in August.
“We believe that there is a rebound of the digital assets industry that has already begun,” said Farley said in an interview with the Journal. “Some of CoinDesk’s products and services are just darn good businesses that we want to own in a crypto bull run.”
