AVAX One begins hunt for permanent CEO as Avalanche-linked treasury strategy faces market headwinds
AVAX One Technology has launched a search for a permanent chief executive after Jolie Kahn stepped down effective immediately, the company disclosed. Chief Operating Officer Pete Wylie will serve as interim CEO while continuing his COO duties, and the board has retained executive search firm ZRG Partners to identify a successor. “We have full confidence in Pete’s ability to lead the Company through this transition,” Chairman Matt Zhang said.
The company’s latest 8-K makes clear Kahn’s exit was mutual and not for cause, and not the result of any disagreement over operations, policies or practices. Her separation package includes a $160,000 lump-sum cash payment, reimbursement for certain medical insurance costs, and $250,000 in unregistered common shares. Wylie will be paid $40,000 per month while acting as interim CEO.
Wylie is described by the company as a seasoned entrepreneur-investor with multiple exits and deep ties to the Avalanche ecosystem — including participating this year as a Build Games judge. He will preside over AVAX One during a critical moment: the firm’s pivot from AgriFORCE into an Avalanche-focused digital asset treasury and infrastructure company has placed its fortunes increasingly tied to AVAX token prices.
Under Kahn’s leadership, the company announced a rebrand in September 2025 from AgriFORCE to AVAX One and unveiled plans to raise roughly $550 million as part of a strategy to accumulate more than $700 million in AVAX holdings. The plan also included forming a strategic advisory board led by SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci. AVAX One now combines digital infrastructure, Bitcoin mining and an Avalanche treasury — operating mining facilities in Alberta and Ohio with roughly 300 PH/s of hashrate while staking and seeking yield from AVAX holdings.
Market moves underscore the challenge ahead. AVAX One’s shares were trading around $5.63 at the latest check — up 5.1% on the day — with a market cap near $549.1 million. The AVAX token itself traded near $6.73, down about 1.9% on the day, and remained under pressure in intraday trading between $6.71 and $7.01. That weakness in AVAX has already weighed on other publicly listed Avalanche treasury plays: Avalanche Treasury Co. saw shares slump roughly 73% from their Nasdaq debut level, and earlier experienced a 38.13% drop on its first trading day after listing while holding about 15 million AVAX.
AVAX One’s leadership transition arrives as investor appetite for altcoin-backed treasury stocks is being tested amid softer token prices. The next CEO will inherit a business that straddles traditional digital infrastructure and a high-beta crypto treasury strategy — a mix that will require navigating volatile markets while trying to deliver on ambitious AVAX accumulation targets.
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