Riot Platforms Taps Strategy Chief as New CFO to Fuel Data Center Push

CASTLE ROCK, CO – January 02, 2026 – Riot Platforms, Inc. (NASDAQ: RIOT) today signaled a major strategic acceleration, announcing the appointment of its corporate development head, Jason Chung, as the company’s new Chief Financial Officer, effective March 1, 2026. The move is widely seen as a deliberate effort to align the company's financial firepower with its aggressive expansion from a Bitcoin mining leader into a developer of large-scale digital infrastructure, including data centers for artificial intelligence.

Chung, who currently serves as the EVP, Head of Corporate Development & Strategy, will succeed Colin Yee. In a move designed to ensure a seamless transition, Yee will shift to a Senior Advisor role, where he will continue to provide counsel through early 2028. The transition consolidates Riot’s finance, corporate development, and investor relations functions under Chung’s leadership, creating a powerful, integrated structure aimed at driving disciplined capital deployment for its ambitious growth projects.

“I am pleased to appoint Jason Chung as Riot’s next CFO,” said Jason Les, CEO of Riot Platforms. “Consolidating our finance and strategy functions under Jason’s leadership positions Riot to move with even greater strategic alignment as we continue to execute on our long-term strategy.”

A Strategic Shift in Leadership

The appointment of Jason Chung is more than a standard executive shuffle; it represents a strategic pivot in how Riot intends to finance and execute its future. With two decades of experience in high-stakes investment banking and corporate finance, Chung’s background is tailor-made for a company embarking on a capital-intensive expansion. Before joining Riot in 2022, he was a Managing Director in Mergers & Acquisitions at Nomura, advising on nearly $20 billion in complex, cross-border technology transactions.

His expertise in M&A, capital markets, and strategic planning has been pivotal in his role shaping Riot’s corporate strategy to date. This experience is now being brought to the forefront of the company’s financial operations. As Riot moves to build out large-scale data centers—a venture requiring massive capital investment and intricate financial planning—Chung’s skillset in structuring deals and securing financing will be critical. His promotion underscores a clear focus on disciplined, value-oriented growth.

“Having led our corporate development efforts, I see a tremendous opportunity to further integrate our financial discipline with our growth ambitions in digital infrastructure,” Chung stated. “I look forward to working with our talented finance team to drive operational efficiency and disciplined capital deployment, ensuring continued value creation for our shareholders.”

Redefining the CFO for a New Era

Riot's leadership change reflects a broader evolution of the CFO role in the technology sector, transforming it from a traditional accounting and reporting function into a central pillar of corporate strategy. By tasking Chung with overseeing finance, corporate development, and investor relations simultaneously, Riot is breaking down internal silos to foster more agile and cohesive decision-making.

This integrated approach is crucial as the company navigates the competitive landscapes of both Bitcoin mining and the burgeoning AI data center market. The ability to rapidly evaluate M&A opportunities, allocate capital efficiently, and communicate a complex growth story to investors is paramount. Chung's consolidated role is designed to achieve exactly that.

Further cementing this strategic shift, Riot has reportedly overhauled its executive compensation structure for 2026. The new annual incentive plan will replace the previous bitcoin yield metric with performance metrics tied directly to data center development. This change directly links executive rewards to the success of the company’s digital infrastructure push, leaving no doubt about where its strategic priorities now lie.

Ensuring Stability Through Thoughtful Transition

While the focus is on a new strategic direction, Riot has also taken deliberate steps to ensure stability and retain valuable institutional knowledge. Colin Yee, the outgoing CFO, is not departing the company but transitioning to a Senior Advisor role. He will continue to serve as CFO until March 1, 2026, to facilitate a smooth handover.

Yee’s tenure since 2022 has been critical in building the company’s financial bedrock. CEO Jason Les credited him with “strengthening Riot’s financial foundation, developing our internal reporting infrastructure, and supporting the Company through key phases of growth.”

By retaining Yee as a highly compensated senior advisor through January 2028, Riot is ensuring his deep understanding of the company’s financial history and operational intricacies remains accessible. This thoughtful succession plan allows Riot to pivot strategically under new leadership without losing the stability and experience that have guided its recent growth. “This transition represents a natural evolution for the Company,” said Yee, underscoring the collaborative nature of the change.

Fueling the Digital Infrastructure Engine

This executive realignment is the latest and most significant move in Riot's evolution from a pure-play Bitcoin miner to a vertically integrated developer of digital infrastructure. The company’s vision to be “the world’s most trusted platform for powering and building digital infrastructure” is now backed by a leadership structure and incentive plan designed to make it a reality.

Riot's existing operations, including large mining facilities in Texas and engineering hubs in Denver and Houston, provide a strong foundation for this expansion. The company’s expertise in developing and managing large-scale, power-intensive facilities for Bitcoin mining is directly transferable to the construction and operation of high-density data centers required for artificial intelligence and other high-performance computing applications.

With Chung at the financial helm, the market will be watching closely to see how effectively Riot can deploy its capital to build out this new business line. The strategic consolidation of finance and corporate development is a clear bet that integrated, expert leadership is the key to conquering the next frontier of the digital economy.