Leading NFT marketplace OpenSea has appointed Brian Robert as its first Chief Financial Officer (CFO). A report unveiled this news on December 6, noting that Roberts joined OpenSea after resigning as the CFO of ride-sharing platform Lyft. Reportedly, the tech veteran worked at Lyft for seven years before his resignation. Before Lyft, Roberts worked at Microsoft and Walmart.
According to the report, Roberts tendered his resignation at Lyft due to the thrill of joining the web3. While he claims to love Lyft, Roberts said the growth in web3 companies and OpenSea, in particular, made his decision to leave Lyft easier. He compared his excitement for joining web3 to the thrill he had about eBay in 1995.
Commenting on Roberts’ appointment, Devin Finzer, the co-founder and CEO of OpenSea, said,
I’m confident that his experience and guidance will be invaluable as we navigate the journey of bringing NFTs to the world while scaling the company and serving the community.
Finzer added that OpenSea appointed Roberts because he reflects the company’s values. These include openness, empathy, inclusivity, and growth orientation.
An IPO is on the horizon
Roberts joins OpenSea after its trading volume swelled significantly this year. Since August, the marketplace has been handling the sale of over 1 million NFTs per month, according to data from Dune Analytics. The marketplace has attracted approximately 300,000 users per month and records a daily volume of over $50 million in ETH most of the time.
While Roberts acknowledged that this growth has already made OpenSea profitable, he intends to raise more funds for the company. His plans for the company include raising more funds to fund acquisitions and partnerships. In so doing, he believes OpenSea will promote further growth in the NFT sector.
Roberts also hinted at OpenSea going public through an initial public offering (IPO).
Explaining why he believes OpenSea would be more successful after going public, Roberts said,
When you have a company growing as fast as this one, you’d be foolish not to think about it going public. It would be well-received in the public market given its growth.
Stunned by OpenSea’s growth, the newly-appointed CFO said he has seen a lot of profit and loss statements (P&Ls) throughout his career. However, none of them compare to OpenSea’s.
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