Sharplink, Inc 8-K, filed Jul 25, 2025
Sharplink, Inc. (SBET)
About this 8-K
Sharplink, Inc filed this 8-K on July 25, 2025, reporting on events of July 24, 2025.
Items reported
- Item 5.02: Director or officer change, or executive pay
- Item 7.01: Regulation FD disclosure
- Item 9.01: Financial statements and exhibits
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549
FORM
CURRENT REPORT
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| Item 5.02 | Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers. |
Officer Appointments and Arrangements
On July 24, 2025 (the “Effective Date”), the board of directors (the “Board”) of SharpLink Gaming, Inc. (the “Company”) appointed Joseph Chalom as Co-Chief Executive Officer of the Company, to serve with Rob Phythian as the Co-Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Mr. Phythian will remain the Company’s principal executive officer. It is anticipated that Mr. Phythian will transition to the role of President over the next quarter and remain a member of the Board.
Mr. Chalom, age 54, has served in senior leadership roles over the course of his 20 year career at BlackRock, Inc. (“BlackRock”). Most recently, from October 2021 to June 2025 he was the Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships at BlackRock and was responsible for executing BlackRock’s strategy in the digital assets, data and technology innovation ecosystems. This included product innovation and strategic partnerships to drive digital asset ecosystem innovation and institutional client adoption. Under Mr. Chalom’s leadership, in 2024, BlackRock launched its IBIT and ETHA exchange traded products and the BUIDL tokenized treasury fund, making it the largest manager of digital assets. Prior to this role, he served as BlackRock’s Deputy Chief Operating Officer on an interim basis from March 2021 to October 2021; and, for over a decade, was the Chief Operating Officer of BlackRock Solutions, which delivers the firm’s Aladdin financial technology capabilities clients globally. Mr. Chalom served on the boards of Securitize, Inc., a leading provider in the tokenized assets and digital transfer agency space for real world assets, from May 2004 until June 2025; and Clarity AI, Inc., a leading AI-powered sustainability platform and data provider, from January 2021 to June 2025. Prior to joining BlackRock, Mr. Chalom worked as a corporate and technology attorney at Skadden Arps and at Arnold & Porter. Mr. Chalom earned a B.A. degree, with honors, in International Studies from Johns Hopkins University and a J.D. degree from Columbia University School of Law.
There is no arrangement or understanding between Mr. Chalom and any other person pursuant to which he was selected as an officer of the Company and there are no family relationships between Mr. Chalom and any of the Company’s directors or executive officers. There are no transactions to which the Company is a party and in which Mr. Chalom has a direct or indirect material interest that would be required to be disclosed under Item 404(a) of Regulation S-K.
Employment Agreements with Executive Officers
In connection with his appointment as the Company’s Co-Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Chalom entered into an employment agreement with the Company effective as of the Effective Date, which provides for (i) an annual base salary of $750,000; (ii) a target short-term incentive opportunity equal to 100% of his base salary, with a maximum opportunity of up to 150% of his base salary; (iii) a sign-on restricted stock unit award, to be granted within 30 days after the Effective Date, with an award value of $7,000,000, which value will be converted to a number of shares (rounded down to the nearest whole share) by dividing (x) the award value, by (y) the average closing per-share price of the Company’s common stock for the seventy five (75) trading days immediately preceding the Effective Date, and which will be allocated two-thirds (2/3) to time-based vesting conditions, with one-third (1/3) of such time-based vesting units vesting on the first (1st) anniversary of the Effective Date and the remaining time-based vesting units vesting in equal quarterly installments thereafter, in each case subject to Executive’s continued employment with the Company, and one-third (1/3) to performance-based vesting conditions, which will vest based on the extent that certain annual performance goals, selected by the Board or a committee thereof, are achieved over a three-year performance cycle; (iv) a long-term incentive opportunity for the 2026 fiscal year commencing July 1, 2026 with a “target” value of not less than $4,000,000; and (v) payment for an annual executive physical. Mr. Chalom’s employment agreement also provides for certain severance benefits if his employment were terminated by the Company without cause, death or disability, or upon his resignation for good reason, including an amount equal to two (2) times his base salary and target bonus, any short-term incentive earned for the prior fiscal year but not yet paid, a pro-rated short-term incentive for the year of termination, based on actual results, subsidized health insurance premiums for eighteen (18) months, full vesting of any time-based equity awards and pro-rated vesting of any performance-based equity awards, based on actual results for the entire performance period. Moreover, upon a change in control, all of his equity awards will vest in full (with performance-based awards vesting based on performance through the date of the transaction). In exchange for the severance benefits, Mr. Chalom must sign a release of claims in favor of the Company. Mr. Chalom’s employment agreement also includes standard confidentiality, non-competition, non-solicitation and non-disparagement covenants.
In connection with his appointment as the Company’s Co-Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Phythian entered into a new employment agreement with the Company, which replaces and supersedes his prior employment agreement with the Company dated as of February 14, 2024, as amended on March 19, 2025, and as amended on June 29, 2025. The employment agreement provides for (i) an annual base salary of $660,000, (ii) a target short-term incentive opportunity equal to 100% of his base salary, with a maximum opportunity of up to 150% of his base salary, (iii) a sign-on restricted stock unit award, to be granted within 30 days after the Effective Date, with an award value of $3,700,000, which value will be converted to a number of shares (rounded down to the nearest whole share) by dividing (x) the award value, by (y) the average closing per-share price of the Company’s common stock for the seventy five (75) trading days immediately preceding the Effective Date, and which will be allocated two-thirds (2/3) to time-based vesting conditions, with one-third (1/3) of such time-based vesting units vesting on the first (1st) anniversary of the Effective Date and the remaining time-based vesting units vesting in equal quarterly installments thereafter, in each case subject to Executive’s continued employment with the Company, and one-third (1/3) to performance-based vesting conditions, which will vest based on the extent that certain annual performance goals, selected by the Board or a committee thereof, are achieved over a three-year performance cycle; (iv) a long-term incentive opportunity for the 2026 fiscal year commencing July 1, 2026 with a “target” value of not less than $3,700,000; and (v) payment for an annual executive physical. Mr. Phythian’s employment agreement also provides for certain severance benefits if his employment were terminated by the Company without cause, death or disability, or upon his resignation for good reason, including an amount equal to two (2) times his base salary and target bonus, any short-term incentive earned for the prior fiscal year but not yet paid, a pro-rated short-term incentive for the year of termination, based on actual results, subsidized health insurance premiums for eighteen (18) months, full vesting of any time-based equity awards and pro-rated vesting of any performance-based equity awards, based on actual results for the entire performance period. Moreover, upon a change in control, all of his equity awards will vest in full (with performance-based awards vesting based on performance through the date of the transaction). In exchange for the severance benefits, Mr. Phythian must sign a release of claims in favor of the Company. Mr. Phythian’s employment agreement also includes standard confidentiality, non-solicitation and non-disparagement covenants.
In connection with these appointments, Mr. DeLucia, our Chief Financial Officer, entered into a new employment agreement with the Company, which replaces and supersedes his prior employment agreement with the Company dated as of February 14, 2024, as amended on March 19, 2025, and as amended on June 29, 2025. The employment agreement provides for (i) an annual base salary of $450,000, (ii) a target short-term incentive opportunity equal to 100% of his base salary, with a maximum opportunity of up to 150% of his base salary, (iii) a sign-on restricted stock unit award, to be granted within 30 days after the Effective Date, with an award value of $1,150,000, which value will be converted to a number of shares (rounded down to the nearest whole share) by dividing (x) the award value, by (y) the average closing per-share price of the Company’s common stock for the seventy five (75) trading days immediately preceding the Effective Date, and which will be allocated two-thirds (2/3) to time-based vesting conditions, with one-third (1/3) of such time-based vesting units vesting on the first (1st) anniversary of the Effective Date and the remaining time-based vesting units vesting in equal quarterly installments thereafter, in each case subject to Executive’s continued employment with the Company, and one-third (1/3) to performance-based vesting conditions, which will vest based on the extent that certain annual performance goals, selected by the Board or a committee thereof, are achieved over a three-year performance cycle; and (iv) a long-term incentive opportunity for the 2026 fiscal year commencing July 1, 2026 with a “target” value of not less than $1,150,000. Mr. DeLucia’s employment agreement also provides for certain severance benefits if his employment were terminated by the Company without cause, death or disability, or upon his resignation for good reason, including an amount equal to two (2) times his base salary and target bonus, any short-term incentive earned for the prior fiscal year but not yet paid, a pro-rated short-term incentive for the year of termination, based on actual results, subsidized health insurance premiums for eighteen (18) months, full vesting of any time-based equity awards and pro-rated vesting of any performance-based equity awards, based on actual results for the entire performance period. Moreover, upon a change in control, all of his equity awards will vest in full (with performance-based awards vesting based on performance through the date of the transaction). In exchange for the severance benefits, Mr. DeLucia must sign a release of claims in favor of the Company. Mr. DeLucia’s employment agreement also includes standard confidentiality, non-competition, non-solicitation and non-disparagement covenants.
The foregoing descriptions of the employment agreements for Messrs. Chalom, Phythian, and DeLucia do not purport to be complete and are qualified in their entirety by reference to the full text of the employment agreements, which will be filed as exhibits to the Company’s next periodic report.
| Item 7.01 | Regulation FD Disclosure. |
On July 25, 2025, the Company issued a press release announcing the appointment of Mr. Chalom as Co-Chief Executive Officer. The press release is attached as Exhibit 99.1 to this Current Report on Form 8-K and incorporated into this item 7.01 by reference.
The information in this Item 7.01 of this Current Report on Form 8-K, including the information contained in Exhibit 99.1, is being furnished to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and shall not be deemed to be “filed” for the purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”) or otherwise subject to the liabilities of that section, and shall not be deemed to be incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Exchange Act, except as shall be expressly set forth by a specific reference in such filing.
| Item 9.01 | Financial Statements and Exhibits. |
(d) Exhibits.
| Exhibit Number |
Description | |
| 99.1 | Press Release, dated July 25, 2025. | |
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as inline XBRL). |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized.
| SHARPLINK GAMING, INC. | ||
| Dated: July 25, 2025 | ||
| By: | /s/ Rob Phythian | |
| Name: | Rob Phythian | |
| Title: | Co-Chief Executive Officer | |
Exhibit 99.1
SharpLink Welcomes BlackRock Digital Assets Pioneer
Joseph Chalom as Newly Appointed Co-CEO
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – July 25, 2025 – SharpLink Gaming, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBET) (“SharpLink” or the “Company”), one of the world’s largest corporate holders of Ether (“ETH”) and prominent industry advocate of Ethereum adoption, today announced the appointment of former BlackRock senior executive Joseph Chalom as its new Co-Chief Executive Officer, effective July 24, 2025. Chalom brings world-class institutional leadership to SharpLink, having spent the past 20 years delivering digital finance innovations at BlackRock, including the launch of the iShares Ethereum Trust (ETHA), the largest Ethereum exchange traded product with over $10 billion in current assets.
Rob Phythian, SharpLink’s current CEO, will transition to the role of President over the next quarter and remain a member of the Company’s Board of Directors.
“Few executives in the world have had the kind of impact Joseph has had in unlocking institutional adoption of digital assets, having pioneered BlackRock’s strategic entry into the space. His decision to join SharpLink is a resounding validation of our ETH treasury strategy and vision for Ethereum to drive profound, transformative change across the global digital economy,” stated Joseph Lubin, SharpLink Chairman, Co-Founder of Ethereum and Founder and CEO of Consensys.
“I am joining SharpLink because I see a powerful opportunity to help shape the future of financial infrastructure and decentralized finance,” said Chalom. “SharpLink’s commitment to aligning its strategic direction with the Ethereum ecosystem reflects a bold and forward-thinking vision – one that deeply resonates with my passion for digital assets and scaling innovative financial technologies. I’m thrilled to be leading SharpLink into its next phase and harnessing Ethereum’s unique value proposition for our shareholders.”
A Fintech Veteran and Digital Assets Leader
Before joining SharpLink, Chalom served as Managing Director, Head of Strategic Ecosystem Partnerships at BlackRock, where he led the firm’s strategy across the digital assets, data and technology ecosystems. He architected strategic partnerships, including BlackRock’s high-profile partnerships with Nasdaq, Coinbase, Anchorage Digital Bank, BNY Mellon and Circle to drive product innovation and broader institutional adoption.
Over his distinguished 20-year tenure at BlackRock, Chalom held multiple senior leadership roles, including serving as BlackRock’s interim Deputy Chief Operating Officer and the Chief Operating Officer of BlackRock Solutions, the division offering Aladdin, BlackRock’s industry-leading portfolio and risk management platform.
Chalom also formerly served on the boards of Securitize, a leader in tokenized assets and digital transfer agency services; and ClarityAI, a top-tier AI-powered sustainability analytics and data platform. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies from Johns Hopkins University and a law degree from Columbia University School of Law.
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About SharpLink Gaming, Inc.
Headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, SharpLink Gaming, Inc. (Nasdaq: SBET) is the world’s largest publicly traded company to adopt Ether (“ETH”) as its primary treasury reserve asset – a move that aligns the Company with the future of digital capital and gives investors direct exposure to Ethereum, the world’s leading smart-contract platform and second largest digital asset.
SharpLink is also reimagining the future of online gaming. Backed by a veteran team with deep roots in sports media, gaming and technology, SharpLink is charting a new course – building scalable, secure and transparent solutions that challenge outdated models and bring real innovation to the user experience. Learn more at www.sharplink.com.
Forward-Looking Statement
Statements in this press release about future expectations, plans and prospects, as well as any other statements regarding matters that are not historical facts, may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and these forward-looking statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Such statements include, but are not limited to, the execution of the Company’s treasury strategy and other statements that are not historical facts, including statements which may be accompanied by the words “intends,” “may,” “will,” “plans,” “expects,” “anticipates,” “projects,” “predicts,” “estimates,” “aims,” “believes,” “hopes,” “potential” or similar words. Actual results could differ materially from those described in these forward-looking statements due to certain factors, including without limitation, the Company’s ability to achieve profitable operations, fluctuations in the market price of ETH that will impact the Company’s accounting and financial reporting (see accounting rules discussed below), government regulation of cryptocurrencies and online betting, changes in securities laws or regulations, customer acceptance of new products and services, the demand for its products and its customers’ economic condition, the impact of competitive products and pricing, the lengthy sales cycle, proprietary rights of the Company, changes in applicable laws or regulations, and its competitors, general economic conditions and other risk factors detailed in the Company’s annual report and other filings with the SEC. Under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, entities are required to measure certain crypto assets at fair value, with changes reflected in net income each reporting period. Changes in the fair value of crypto assets could result in significant fluctuations to the balance sheet and income statement results. Any forward-looking statements contained in this press release speak only as of the date hereof, and the Company does not undertake any responsibility to update the forward-looking statements in this press release.
Investor Relations Contact
Sean Mansouri, CFA or Aaron D’Souza
Elevate IR
(720) 330-2829
ir@sharplink.com
Media Contact:
media@sharplink.com
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