Alameda Research Co-CEO Steps Down

Sam Trabucco leaves role “to prioritize other things” as Caroline Ellison to remain at helm

article-image

Source: Shutterstock

share

key takeaways

  • Sam Trabucco and Caroline Ellison were named co-CEOs of Alameda last October
  • The now-former Alameda executive to remain an adviser to the firm, though did not reveal other future professional plans

Alameda Research co-CEO Sam Trabucco is stepping down from his role at the crypto quantitative trading firm and liquidity provider.

In a series of tweets Wednesday, Trabucco said he’ll stay on with the firm as an adviser, but will no longer have a strong day-to-day presence at Alameda. Caroline Ellison will continue as sole CEO, an Alameda spokesperson told Blockworks.

“For years, I couldn’t think of anything more worthwhile to do with my time than to give it to Alameda,” he tweeted. “It’s honestly been a thrill to be a part of, despite being difficult and exhausting and consuming. But I’ve reached a point in life where I have to prioritize other things.”

Founded by FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried in 2017, Alameda trades billions of dollars per day across every liquid cryptocurrency market. Trabucco and Ellison were appointed co-CEOs of the company last October after joining Alameda as traders in 2019 and 2018, respectively.  

Trabucco had reduced his role at Alameda over the last few months. He does not currently have any projects lined up.

“I can’t 100% remove myself from crypto without going into withdrawal, so I’ll probably still be around here to some extent,” he said. 

Before joining Alameda Research, Ellison worked on the equities desk at Jane Street, where she met Bankman-Fried. The two worked closely together building out Alameda’s trading floor and back-office operations into a 25-person team. 

“It’s been an incredibly formative experience working with [Trabucco],” Ellison tweeted. “I’ve missed having him around in recent months, but I’m proud of all the other Alameda employees who have stepped up and [am] more excited than ever about our future.”


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

  • Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
  • Empire: Start your morning with the top news and analysis to inform your day in crypto.
  • Forward Guidance: Reporting and analysis on the growing intersection of crypto and macroeconomics, policy and finance.
  • 0xResearch: Alpha directly in your inbox. Market highlights, data, degen trade ideas, governance updates, token performance and more.
  • Lightspeed: Built for Solana investors, developers and community members. The latest from one of crypto’s hottest networks.
  • The Drop: For crypto collectors and traders, covering apps, games, memes and more.
  • Supply Shock: Tracking Bitcoin’s rise from internet plaything worth less than a penny to global phenomenon disrupting money as we know it.
Tags

Upcoming Events

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

morpho 2 graphic.png

Research

Utilizing a ‘DeFi Mullet’ approach, Coinbase’s Bitcoin-backed loans integration with Morpho demonstrates a powerful blueprint for CEXs to monetize dormant assets by expanding adoption of wrapped products (cbBTC, USDC) while also supporting native and/or preferred DeFi ecosystems (Base) which can further lead to downstream growth in onchain liquidity and increased utilization of the related assets.

article-image

The network is at a “pivotal juncture,” Blockworks Research’s Marc-Thomas Arjoon said

article-image

Altcoin trade volume has returned to pre-FTX levels, but with a shrinking pool of market leaders

article-image

Solana Foundation’s former head of strategy proposes increasing the disinflation rate

article-image

With much of the bitcoin mining supply chain based in Asia, US-based operations now face higher equipment prices

article-image

Anticipating an economic downturn, venture firms may be less likely to invest

article-image

Trump’s tariffs may have potentially significant impacts on GDP, household spending and food prices — if they hold