Wirecard CEO Markus Braun resigns with immediate effect

Cryptocurrency • June 19, 2020, 8:05AM EDT
UPDATED: June 19, 2020, 8:10AM EDT
Tony Stock / Shutterstock

Wirecard CEO Markus Braun has resigned with immediate effect, the company announced Friday.

The German payment processor said Braun’s resignation is in mutual consent with the supervisory board. Wirecard has now appointed James H. Freis as interim CEO. Freis joined the company’s management board just yesterday.

THE SCOOP

Keep up with the latest news, trends, charts and views on crypto and DeFi with a new biweekly newsletter from The Block's Frank Chaparro

By signing-up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy
By signing-up you agree to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Braun’s resignation comes just a day after Wirecard announced that its auditor EY is unable to find evidence for 1.9 billion euros (over $2 billion) worth of cash balances on its trust accounts. Wirecard said “spurious” balances may have been provided by a third party “in order to deceive the auditor”.

Wirecard's subsidiary Wirecard Card Solutions issues Crypto.com's MCO Visa Card and TenX's Visa Debit Card. Crypto.com CEO Kris Marszalek told The Block yesterday that the news doesn’t affect them since the firm’s Wirecard debit cards are "fully prefunded." It means clients' fiat funds are held by an electronic money institution regulated by the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in segregated client accounts.

Shares of Wirecard have taken a beating. They were down by more than 50% yesterday, and are currently down by around 75%, to trade at about 25 euros (~$28) apiece.

About Author

Yogita Khatri is a senior reporter at The Block, covering all things crypto. As one of the earliest team members, Yogita has played a pivotal role in breaking numerous stories, exclusives and scoops. With nearly 3,000 articles under her belt, Yogita holds the records as The Block's most-published and most-read author of all time. Prior to joining The Block, Yogita worked at crypto publication CoinDesk and The Economic Times, where she wrote on personal finance. To contact her, email: [email protected]. For her latest work, follow her on X @Yogita_Khatri5.

More by Yogita Khatri