Brock Pierce | |
|---|---|
 Pierce in 2018 | |
| Born | Brock Jeffrey Pierce (1980-11-14)November 14, 1980 (age 44) Minneapolis,Minnesota, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur Former child actor |
| Years active | Acting: 1992–1997 Business: 1999–present |
| Known for | The Mighty Ducks,D2: The Mighty Ducks,First Kid |
| Political party | Independent |
| Spouse | Crystal Rose[1] |
| Website | Campaign website |
Brock Jeffrey Pierce (born November 14, 1980) is an American entrepreneur known primarily for his work in thecryptocurrency industry and as the co-founder ofTether.[2][3] As a child actor, he starred in theDisney filmsThe Mighty Ducks (1992),D2: The Mighty Ducks (1994), andFirst Kid (1996). He ran as an independent candidate in the2020 United States presidential election.[4]
Pierce was born inMinnesota and appeared in commercials as a toddler.[5] His first major role was playing a young Gordon Bombay inThe Mighty Ducks (1992). Pierce reprised the role inD2: The Mighty Ducks. He starred as Luke Davenport inFirst Kid (1996). Pierce had small roles inLittle Big League (1994),Ripper Man (1995),Problem Child 3: Junior in Love (1995),Three Wishes (1995),Earth Minus Zero (1996), andThe Ride (1997).[6]
Pierce retired from acting at 16 and joined as a minor partner withMarc Collins-Rector and Chad Schackley in establishingDigital Entertainment Network (DEN), which raised $88 million in venture capital.[7] DEN's goal was to deliver original episodic video content over the Internet aimed at niche audiences.[8] DEN was one of a crop of dot-com startups that focused on the creation and delivery of original video content online in the late 1990s[9] before the wide adoption ofbroadband internet access. Pierce produced its first show, a pilot for gay teenagers calledChad's World.[10] As an 18-year-old, Pierce was making $250,000 a year and held 1% of the company's shares.[11]
DEN was slated for a US$75 million IPO in October 1999, but the IPO was withdrawn in the wake of allegations of sexual assault against Collins-Rector. All three executives subsequently resigned. Layoffs followed in February 2000. While a new executive team led by formerCapitol Records PresidentGary Gersh and formerMicrosoft executive Greg Carpenter attempted to relaunch in May 2000, DEN filed for bankruptcy and shut down in June 2000.[12]
In 2001, Pierce foundedInternet Gaming Entertainment (IGE), a company that pioneered theMMORPG currency-selling services industry.[13] Between 2004 and 2005, IGE spent more than $25 million buying out seven smaller competitors, including four auction platforms and many fan and content sites.[14] In 2005, Pierce estimated that IGE accounted for about 50% of this online market in the U.S., which has about $500 million in annual volume.[14][15]
Pierce brought inSteve Bannon, formerly ofGoldman Sachs andBreitbart News, to seek venture capital, and a deal was made in February 2006 yielding $60 million, of which Pierce took away $20 million for a minority stake. The next year, the company faced a class-action lawsuit. With no assets, the company failed, and Pierce was forced out.[16]
Pierce founded ZAM, a network of websites oriented around massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG), such asWorld of Warcraft,Star Wars: The Old Republic,Rift,EverQuest, etc., in 2003.[17] The ZAM.com network included gaming websites such as ZAM.com,Wowhead,Thottbot, Torhead, and D3DB. In March 2012, Chinese internet and tech giantTencent, acquired ZAM.[18]
In 2010, Titan Gaming recruited Pierce to sit on its board along withEA Executive Keith McCurdy.[19] Pierce joined other Southern California angel investors, includingMP3.com's Michael Robertson,SOA Software's Eric Pulier and William Quigley, and Jim Armstrong ofClearstone Ventures.[20] Also that year, Titan Gaming purchased the rising online gaming network Xfire from Viacom.[21] In October 2011, after Xfire received over $4 million in fresh funding from Intel Capital, Titan Gaming and Xfire cut ties and went their own ways. Titan Gaming and Xfire now operate independently.[22] In late April 2012, Titan Gaming announced that it would be rebranded as Playsino to embark in a complete makeover, with Pierce as the new CEO and $1.5 million of new funding.[citation needed]
As of 2013, Pierce was managing director of the Clearstone Global Gaming Fund, a board member of IMI Exchange (a remnant of the IGE restructuring), Xfire, Playsino (having been replaced as CEO in 2013), GoCoin, FGL, Spicy Horse Games, KnCMiner.cn and the Mastercoin Foundation. He was also a member investor of Bit Angels and an investor in BTC China.[23] IMI exchange was subsequently acquired by Moda Inc.[24]
Pierce has been a guest speaker at theMilken Global Conference,[25]Singularity University,[26] and theCalifornia Institute of Technology.[23]
In 2013, Pierce joined brothers Bart and Bradford Stephens in foundingventure capital firmBlockchain Capital (BCC), which was reported to have raised $85 million in two venture funds by October 2017.[27] Blockchain Capital raised a third fund using digital security offering on theblockchain, one of the first traded security tokens.[28][29]
Pierce worked with Mastercoin, a startup that raised capital via aninitial coin offering (ICO) in 2013. According to Bloomberg, this "kicked off a worldwide ICO craze, with hundreds of startups raising billions of dollars".[30]
In March 2014, Pierce and a group of investors filed an offer to purchase the assets ofMt Gox using a Cypriot entity called Sunlot Holdings Ltd. The month before, Mt Gox had shut down operations and filed for bankruptcy inTokyo after announcing that it had lost 850,000Bitcoin.[31][32]
Pierce was elected Director of theBitcoin Foundation in May 2014.[33][34] Several members of the Bitcoin Foundation resigned over concerns about the directors.[35] The organization announced its insolvency in July 2015.[36]
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In a February 2018 issue ofForbes magazine, Pierce was named in the "top 20 wealthiest people in crypto" with an estimated net worth between $700 million and $1.1 billion.[37]
Pierce was a co-founder of the cryptocurrency Tether with Reeve Collins and Craig Sellars in 2014.[38] Tether surpassed Bitcoin in trading volume with the highest daily and monthly trading volume of any cryptocurrency on the market in 2019.[39] Tether is a so-called stablecoin because it allegedly maintains $1 in reserves for each tether issued.[39] In 2020, a court permitted theAttorney General of New York to pursue a claim thatBitfinex, an affiliated exchange, did not disclose the loss of commingled funds.[30] In an interview in July 2020, Pierce said his involvement in Tether ended in 2015, but described Tether as "one of the most important innovations in currency."[30]
Pierce co-founded Block.one, which releasedEOS.IO software.[30] The ICO raised more than $4 billion, the largest in history.[30] By March 2018, Pierce's role at Block.one had changed to chief strategy officer and he resigned from the company that month to pursue community building.[40]
Pierce led an international delegation toEl Salvador in June 2021, to advise the Salvadorian government on their formal adoption ofBitcoin as their national currency.[41][42]
In 2018, Pierce converteda former monastery in theOld San Juan, Puerto Rico, into his headquarters.[43]
In 2020, Pierce acquiredDwight Howard's Pierce School Loft in Washington, D.C.[44] Originally built in 1893, the Pierce School Lofts are located in a former schoolhouse named for U.S. PresidentFranklin Pierce.[45]
In June 2021, Pierce co-founded Roundtable Media alongside James Heckman and David Bailey.[46][47]
Pierce is the vice chair and spokesperson of the U.S. Marines Toys for Tots Foundation of New York, Long Island, and Puerto Rico.[48] In late 2021, Pierce funded a new NYPD Gaming Trucks initiative in New York City.[49]
On July 5, 2020, Pierce announced his candidacy forPresident of the United States in the2020 election as anIndependent. The campaign filed registration documents with theFEC on July 7.[50] Pierce based his campaign around his background as an entrepreneur,[4] and his running mate was Karla Ballard, a fellow entrepreneur.[51][52] Pierce gained ballot access inOklahoma on July 15,[53] inArkansas on August 12,[51]Colorado on August 19.[52] and was nominated by theNew York Independence Party on August 24. Pierce was endorsed by venture capitalist and Bitcoin advocateTim Draper.[54] Pierce was also backed up by singer and entrepreneurAkon, who managed his presidential campaign as chief strategist.[55] Pierce received just 0.03% of the votes in the election.[56] On September 14, he announced that he would form a new party and run candidates in 2022.[57][58]Jesse Ventura, former Minnesota governor, mayor, actor, and professional wrestler, also endorsed Pierce.[59]
Pierce proposed "America 2.0", with a government that embraces technology,[60] and believes technology is the biggest issue for the United States' future.[61] Pierce has said that he would institute auniversal basic income,[62] which could be enabled by digital currencies.[63] He also supports a single-payer health-care system and the legalization of marijuana.[64] Stating that thewar on drugs has failed, he advocates ending federal enforcement and to pardon and expunge all non-violentcannabis crimes.[65] Pierce has criticized the two-party system and has stated that he intends to start a majorthird party.[66]
TheFree & Equal Elections Foundation hosted the Second Open Presidential Debate on October 8, 2020, inDenver, Colorado, with participation limited to candidates on the ballot in at least eight states.[67] Participants in the debate included Pierce alongsideHowie Hawkins of theGreen Party,Brian Carroll of theAmerican Solidarity Party,Don Blankenship of theConstitution Party; andGloria La Riva of theParty for Socialism & Liberation.[68]
In Casper, Wyoming, Pierce announced the Independent National Convention, to be held in Cheyenne, Wyoming on October 23–24, 2020. Pierce said the convention would include minor, third-party candidates to share their message.[69] Pierce is the only independent candidate to appear on the Wyoming ballot.[70]
On October 13, 2020, Pierce became the first presidential candidate in U.S. history to receive a vote through an app on a personal mobile phone using blockchain technology, inUtah County using theVoatz app.[71]
He received the endorsement of theIndependence Party of New York and theIndependent Party of Florida.[72]
In November 2021, Pierce filed a statement of organization with theFEC and later confirmed he was considering a 2022 run for the United States Senate to replace retiring Vermont senatorPatrick Leahy[73] After news reports indicated Pierce could lose his federal income tax-free status as a Puerto Rico resident by running in Vermont,[74] he did not file to qualify for the ballot.
He is married to Crystal Rose, CEO of Sensay and co-chairman of the United Council of Rising Nations.[75]
In 2000, three former DEN employees filed a lawsuit againstMarc Collins-Rector and Pierce alleging that they provided the plaintiffs with drugs and pressured them for sex when Pierce and one of the plaintiffs were still teenagers.[33][40][75][76]
The charges were "ultimately dismissed and/or settled out of court as to Pierce and Shackley.""[77]
In 2017, he relocated toPuerto Rico along with other traders, becoming the leader of a group focused on creating a cryptocurrency based local economy on the island, capitalizing on the aftermath ofHurricane Maria.[78]
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | The Mighty Ducks | Gordon, age 9 | |
| 1994 | D2: The Mighty Ducks | Young Gordon Bombay | |
| 1994 | Little Big League | Sidney | |
| 1995 | Ripper Man | Kevin | |
| 1995 | Problem Child 3: Junior in Love | Duke Phlim | TV movie |
| 1995 | Three Wishes | Scott | |
| 1996 | First Kid | U.S. First Son Luke Davenport | |
| 1996 | Earth Minus Zero | Joey Heller | |
| 1997 | Two Small Voices | Brad | TV movie |
| 1997 | The Ride | Danny O'Neil | |
| 1997 | Legend of the Lost Tomb | John Robie | TV movie |
| 2014 | An Open Secret | Himself | Documentary; archive footage |
| 2015 | Play Money | Himself | Documentary |
| 2020 | Landfall | Himself | Documentary |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
