Bitmain Co-Founder Jihan Wu Loses Executive Power in Board Reshuffle, Says Chinese Media

Bitmain co-founder Jihan Wu is reportedly no longer able to influence corporate decisions at the mining firm, Chinese industry media outlet Sanyan Blockchain reported Nov. 13. 

Citing an unnamed “financial news” source, Sanyan quotes a lawyer for Bitmain, Tian Yangang, saying that as a result of the redistribution of positions at the company’s executive board, Wu had been demoted from being a “director” to a “supervisor.”

“After changing to a supervisor, there are no voting rights, so [Wu’s] power is smaller and [he] cannot participate in the business decision-making of the enterprise,” a rough translation of his comments reads.

The news comes three months after Bitmain received a $18 billion valuation ahead of plans to launch an IPO.

The move has seen Bitmain court controversy over its financial health, with speculators considering the company’s vast Bitcoin Cash reserves as one of many potential sticking points.

Wu currently owns a 20.25 percent stake in the Bitcoin mining giant, which released its latest mining hardware, the Antminer S15 and T15, last week.