Amber Baldet, a JPMorgan Chase executive who leads the bank’s blockchain team, is leaving the company to start a business of her own.
Baldet had been heading up JPMorgan’s Blockchain Center of Excellence, where she led the product direction for Quorum, JPMorgan’s business-oriented blockchain, a buzzy database technology that uses shared ledgers for record keeping. Quorum is adapted from Ethereum, the No. 2 cryptocurrency network after Bitcoin by total market value.
Jessica Francisco, a JPMorgan spokesperson, confirmed the news of Baldet’s departure in a statement to Coins2Day. “Amber is extremely talented and helped build the outstanding team we have today. We respect her desire to start her own venture and we wish her nothing but the best,” the statement said.
Christine Moy, a senior product manager at JPMorgan, is set to assume Baldet’s role at the helm of the blockchain group. Moy was Baldet’s first hire to the blockchain team.
JPMorgan is one of a slew of companies exploring the business potential for blockchains, the technology that undergirds Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. Like many corporations, JPMorgan stands to gain if the technology can help it achieve quicker, cheaper, and more secure financial transactions.
Unlike Bitcoin, JPMorgan’s blockchain Quorum is private, or “permissioned,” meaning that only authorized participants can join the network of machines that maintains it.
Coins2Day obtained a copy of the email that Umar Farooq, Baldet’s boss, sent Monday to employees internally regarding her exit. Below is the text of that note.
Blockchain Center of Excellence Leadership Update
I want to share that Amber Baldet has decided to pursue an entrepreneurial opportunity outside the firm. Christine Moy will succeed Amber as the program lead for the Blockchain Center of Excellence (BCOE).
Amber has been an integral part of developing our blockchain capabilities and helped build out the BCOE and the outstanding team that we have today. We thank her for her leadership and contributions to the CIB and the firm.
I also want to congratulate Christine on her new role. She has worked with Amber and the BCOE from its inception and is a blockchain thought leader. Most recently, she has been leading blockchain product development across our Investor Services and Capital Markets businesses. We are thrilled to have such a strong successor in our ranks.
Baldet appeared on Coins2Day’s 2017 “40 Under 40” list, which highlights the most influential young people in business.
Reuters first reported news of Baldet’s departure on Monday. Baldet has yet to reveal details about the new company.