BlockTower Capital quietly parts ways with top execs: sources

Quick Take

  • BlockTower Capital veteran execs Michael Bucella and Steve Lee have quietly left the crypto investment firm.
  • The departures come at a turbulent time for institutional investors focused on crypto.

BlockTower Capital, a leading crypto investment firm, has parted ways with a pair of veteran executives.

General partner Michael Bucella left the Miami-based company recently, according to two people familiar with the matter. Meanwhile, Steve Lee, investment director and head of Asia-Pacific, departed in September, according to his LinkedIn profile.

Bucella and Lee joined BlockTower from investment bank Goldman Sachs in 2017 and 2018, respectively.

Exactly why they left the firm is not clear. BlockTower did not respond to a request for comment.

Their departures come with rival investment outfits across the crypto sector still licking their wounds after the sudden collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX late last year. A wide variety of investment firms have been affected.

Galois shuts down

Crypto hedge fund Galois Capital announced Monday that it is closing its doors given that a significant amount of assets remain stuck on FTX. The Block revealed in December that QCP Capital, another crypto trading firm, had at least $97 million trapped on the exchange.

Venture capitalists in the sector, including Multicoin Capital and Mechanism Capital, have also been caught up in the carnage.

Founded in 2017, BlockTower is involved in trading, venture capital, credit underwriting and portfolio management, according to its website.

In October last year, the company unveiled a $150 million venture fund, which had been operating in stealth since December 2021. BlockTower counts numerous blue-chip crypto projects in its venture portfolio, including Aptos Labs, Axie Infinity developer Sky Mavis, Solana, Centrifuge and Dapper Labs.


© 2025 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

AUTHOR

Ryan Weeks is deals editor at the The Block, focused on fundraising, M&A and institutional trends in the crypto space, among other things. He is particularly interested in investigative work — so please send tips! Ryan previously worked at Financial News, Dow Jones as a fintech correspondent in London. Prior to that, he wrote for several different publications, including Sifted, AltFi and Wired. Beyond journalism, Ryan is a keen reader and writer. He enjoys all things active, especially running, rugby, climbing and tennis.

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AUTHOR

Frank Chaparro is Host of The Scoop podcast and Director of Special Projects. He also writes a biweekly newsletter. Chaparro started his career at Business Insider, where he specialized in the intersection of digital assets and Wall Street, market structure, and financial technology. Soon after joining Business Insider out of Fordham University, Chaparro was interviewing top finance and tech executives, including billionaire Mark Cuban, “Flash Boys” star Brad Katsuyama, Cboe Global Markets CEO Ed Tilly, and New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley. In 2018, he become a sought after reporter in the crypto world, interviewing luminaries such as Tyler Winklevoss, the cofounder of Gemini, Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of Circle, and Fundstrat head Tom Lee. For inquiries or tips, email [email protected].

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Editor

To contact the editors of this story: Andrew Rummer at [email protected], Michael McSweeney at [email protected]

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