SharpLink Gaming has appointed Joseph Chalom, BlackRock’s longtime head of digital-asset strategy, as co-chief executive officer. Chalom spent two decades at the world’s largest asset manager, where he oversaw the launch of IBIT, the biggest Bitcoin exchange-traded product, ETHA, the leading spot Ethereum ETP, and the tokenized U.S. Treasury fund BUIDL. At SharpLink, Chalom will share the top job as the company accelerates its pivot to an Ethereum-centric corporate treasury and infrastructure strategy. SharpLink, chaired by Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin, has accumulated about 360,000 ether, making it the second-largest corporate holder of the token. The hire underscores intensifying competition among firms amassing ether after a surge in institutional demand. BlackRock’s ETHA crossed the US$10 billion asset mark earlier this month, while rival BitMine recently disclosed a US$2 billion purchase of Ether to top SharpLink’s stash. Chalom said SharpLink’s alignment with the Ethereum ecosystem “deeply resonates” with his focus on scaling digital-asset finance.