MoonPay Adds Wall Street, National Security Council, Silicon Valley, and Digital Asset Veterans to Board & Advisors in Single Expansion

Appointments reflect the company’s rapid evolution into regulated financial infrastructure connecting traditional finance and digital assets

MoonPay, the leading crypto payments network, has announced that Amy Butte, and Mike Hayes have joined the Board of Directors of MoonPay Inc, Jonathan Auerbach has joined the board of MoonPay USA LLC, and Tad Smith is joining as an advisor.

The four arrive from very different backgrounds: national security, global payments, capital markets, media and entertainment. What they share is a track record of building and scaling organizations at the highest levels of business and government. Auerbach led strategy, M&A, and growth at PayPal for nearly a decade and launched PayPal USD, the company’s stablecoin. Butte has taken three companies public as CFO, most recently Navan and previously the New York Stock Exchange. Hayes spent 20 years as a U.S. Navy SEAL, rising to Commanding Officer of SEAL Team TWO, advised two Presidents from both parties on the National Security Council, and went on to lead VMware’s worldwide operations as COO through its $94 billion acquisition by Broadcom. Smith ran Sotheby’s and Madison Square Garden, and has invested directly in the digital asset economy through 50T Funds, whose portfolio includes Coinbase, Kraken, and Gemini.

Their arrival follows a year of significant milestones for MoonPay, including the appointment of former CFTC Acting Chairman Caroline D. Pham as Chief Legal Officer, the acquisitions of Sodot and DFlow, the launch of MoonPay Trade, the securing of both a New York BitLicense and a Limited Purpose Trust Charter, and integration as the first crypto onramp in ChatGPT. MoonPay now serves more than 30 million customers across 180 countries and over 500 enterprise clients.

With the addition of Hayes, MoonPay Inc’s Board now includes two White House Fellows: Hayes and existing board member Mike Lempres. The White House Fellows program, founded by President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964, is the nation’s most prestigious program for leadership and public service, with fewer than 900 alumni in its more than six-decade history. It is exceptionally rare for two Fellows to serve on the same corporate board.

“The people who choose to join you say as much about your company as anything on your balance sheet,” said Ivan Soto-Wright, co-founder and CEO of MoonPay. “Jonathan, Amy, Mike, and Tad have each led through moments where an entire industry was being reshaped. That’s exactly where we are. MoonPay was founded to make moving value as simple as sending a message, and the team we’re assembling reflects the scale of that ambition.”

Read More on Fintech : Global Fintech Interview with Rob Young, Managing Director – UK at InDebted

Jonathan Auerbach, Board of Directors: Auerbach spent nearly a decade at PayPal as Chief Strategy and Growth Officer, where he led the company’s M&A and Ventures teams, served as Chairman of PayPal’s Operating Group, and incubated its blockchain and digital currency business, including the launch of PayPal USD, the company’s US dollar stablecoin. Previously he was CEO of Digital Life at SingTel, Asia’s leading communications group, and he was at McKinsey & Co for 27 years, where he was a Senior Partner, and led the Firm’s U.S. technology practice amongst other leadership roles. He serves on the Board of Directors of Principal Financial Group and is a life member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He graduated Phi Beta Kappa, Magna Cum Laude from Dartmouth College, where he was a National Harry S. Truman Scholar, and received a B.A. and M.A. from Oxford University as a Keasbey Memorial Foundation Scholar.

“MoonPay is building the operating system for the future movement and management of money and I couldn’t be more excited to join the Board to be part of that journey. Ivan has assembled an exceptional team, the traction is impressive, and the opportunity ahead is tremendous.” – Jonathan Auerbach

Amy Butte, Board of Directors: Butte is a board director and strategic advisor who has led three IPOs as CFO, a feat accomplished by very few financial executives. Most recently she took Navan public in 2025. Previously she helped lead the historic transition of the New York Stock Exchange to a public company in 2006. She currently serves on the boards of Bain Capital Specialty Finance and Bain Capital Private Credit. Her governance experience includes Audit Chair roles at DigitalOcean, BNP Paribas USA, and Fidelity Investments Strategic Advisers Funds. Earlier in her career, she was a highly ranked Equity Research Analyst at Bear Stearns and Merrill Lynch covering financial services. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a B.A. from Yale University, and has been recognized as a CNBC Changemaker and World Economic Forum Young Global Leader.

“The most transformative companies pair bold vision with disciplined execution. MoonPay has both, and I am honored to join the Board as Audit Chair.” – Amy Butte

Mike Hayes, Board of Directors: Hayes is Managing Director at Insight Partners, a global software investment firm with $90B+ in assets under management. He previously served as COO of VMware, where he led the company’s worldwide operations and its $94 billion acquisition by Broadcom. Before entering the private sector, Hayes spent four years at Bridgewater Associates in Chief of Staff roles to the CEO and COO, and 20 years as a U.S. Navy SEAL, where he rose to Commanding Officer of SEAL Team TWO and Commander of a 2,000-person Special Operations Task Force in southeastern Afghanistan. He was selected as a White House Fellow and served as Director of Defense Policy and Strategy on the National Security Council, advising two Presidents from both parties. In that role, he led the White House response to the hijacking of the Maersk Alabama and produced a new proposed START Treaty, traveling to Russia for negotiations. His military decorations include the Bronze Star for valor in combat and the Defense Superior Service Medal from the White House. Hayes holds an M.A. from Harvard’s Kennedy School and is the author of two bestsellers, Never Enough and Mission Driven, donating all profits to a foundation he started that pays off mortgages for Gold Star families. He is a lifetime member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

“Technology is the most powerful force for elevating societies and MoonPay is proving that in payments. The infrastructure they’ve built and the speed at which they’ve built it reminds me of the best organizations I’ve been part of. Proud to join this board.” – Mike Hayes

Tad Smith, Strategic Advisor: Smith has spent decades as CEO of major public and private companies, including Sotheby’s, where he globalized and digitized the business before its nearly $4 billion sale, and The Madison Square Garden Company. He is currently CEO of Candy Digital, which holds exclusive worldwide digital collectibles licenses from Major League Baseball and DC Comics, and CEO of Durable Money LLC. Smith has deep roots in the digital asset economy as a former partner at 50T Funds, a growth equity fund whose investments include Coinbase, Kraken, Gemini, and Animoca. He is Chairman of the board of Doodles, one of the most recognized web3 brands. He chairs the audit committee of Lindblad Expeditions and has taught finance and strategy at NYU Stern for more than two decades, where he recently created a graduate course requiring AI in every aspect of the curriculum. He is a graduate of Harvard Business School, where he was a George F. Baker Scholar, and of Princeton University.

“My prior business ran on one question: who owns this and can they prove it. The question hasn’t changed but the ledger sure has. MoonPay is building the rails that let a new generation answer it, and I’m glad to be part of that.” – Tad Smith

The post MoonPay Adds Wall Street, National Security Council, Silicon Valley, and Digital Asset Veterans to Board & Advisors in Single Expansion appeared first on GlobalFinTechSeries.