Microstrategy Expands Board Before Nasdaq 100 Inclusion

Microstrategy, shortly before its addition to the Nasdaq 100 stock index on Monday, has added 3 members to its board of directors, bringing the total count to 9 members, a recent filing shows.

The new board members are Brian Brooks, Jane Dietze, and Gregg Winiarski, who all have experience with large corporations that deal with digital assets, according to the filing. Each board member will receive an equity package with a value of $2 million, with half in options and half in RSUs which will vest over four years.

Brian Brooks

Brian Brooks is likely the most well-known among crypto investors, having formerly served as CEO of Binance.US, the US-based arm of the global Binance exchange, from May 2021 to August 2021. Brooks was also the chief legal officer at Coinbase from September 2018 to March 2020. His experience includes serving as the Acting Comptroller of the Currency from April 2020 to January 2021, overseeing banks’ digital asset-related activities. Additionally, he was CEO of Bitfury, a Bitcoin mining company, from October 2021 to December 2022.

Jane Dietze

Jane Dietze has been the chief investment officer of Brown University since July 2018, overseeing the Ivy League university’s $7.2 billion endowment. She has also served on the board of directors of Galaxy Digital since February 2022. Mike Novogratz, Galaxy Digital’s founder, praised her as a “thought leader in the endowment space.”

Gregg Winiarski

Gregg Winiarski, the new chief legal officer of sports apparel and collectibles company Fanatics since February 2023, joined Microstrategy’s board as well. Prior to this role, he served as a senior adviser to Fanatics and holds an Ivy League degree, like his fellow new board members.

Conclusion

The new board members have joined just as MicroStrategy will be added to the Nasdaq 100 index on Monday, Dec. 23. The company recently acquired another $1.5 billion worth of Bitcoin, increasing its total holdings to 439,000 BTC. MicroStrategy’s total holdings were bought at an average price of $61,725 per Bitcoin, totaling around $27.1 billion, including fees and expenses, as reported by co-founder and executive chairman, Michael Saylor.