Zac Prince Moves Beyond Crypto: How BlockFi's Founder Is Channeling Platform Expertise into Real Estate Tech

Zac Prince, the founder and former CEO of BlockFi, is stepping away from the cryptocurrency industry entirely to join Re Cost Seg, an emerging real estate technology startup. The move marks a significant career pivot for one of crypto’s most prominent figures, though it reflects deliberate strategic thinking rather than an abrupt exit.

Prince described his decision-making process candidly: while he considered launching another crypto venture, he ultimately chose a different path. “I’m passionate about the space and believe in it as much as when I started BlockFi,” he told CoinDesk. However, personal considerations influenced the outcome. His wife encouraged him to pursue something less volatile and demanding than the relentless pace of the cryptocurrency industry. The shift represents both a lifestyle choice and a professional opportunity to apply hard-earned expertise in a new domain.

Bringing Crypto Innovation to Real Estate Markets

Re Cost Seg focuses on providing cost segregation studies for real estate investors—a financial service that enables property owners to accelerate depreciation schedules and reduce tax liabilities. Traditionally, these high-value services have been accessible only to large institutional investors due to prohibitive costs. The residential real estate market, where “Mom and Pop” landlords constitute approximately 70% of owners according to data from the National Association of Realtors, has largely remained underserved.

“This company is democratizing access to these cost segregation studies,” Prince explained, drawing parallels to BlockFi’s original mission. Just as BlockFi provided tax-efficient mechanisms for managing cryptocurrency assets, Re Cost Seg aims to make sophisticated financial tools available to everyday investors. “Our products will save you money on taxes—like nobody wants to pay more taxes. Everybody loves saving money on taxes,” Prince said, highlighting the universal appeal of the value proposition.

Transferring Lessons from Crypto to Traditional Finance

Prince emphasized that his experience building BlockFi provides a substantial competitive advantage in the real estate tech space. The operational and strategic insights gained from launching consumer-facing crypto products translate directly to creating accessible fintech solutions in other sectors.

One core lesson: customer service excellence. “We were the first company in the crypto lending category to have a phone number that people could call,” Prince noted. This seemingly basic feature represented a commitment to accessibility and client support that became a differentiator in an industry often criticized for poor customer care. He plans to bring this philosophy to Re Cost Seg’s client operations.

Equally important, Prince aims to import the rapid development cycles that characterize crypto innovation. “In five years, we launched four consumer-facing products and an institutional platform, along with internal tools and processes for efficient product development,” he explained. This agility—the ability to iterate quickly, test market reactions, and scale winning products—is less common in traditional real estate finance, where development cycles typically span years rather than months.

Marketing expertise represents another valuable transfer. The cryptocurrency industry operates within a continuous 24/7 media environment with fragmented, sophisticated audiences. “Learning to navigate that and developing strategies, such as partnering with big podcasters, was key,” Prince reflected. These skills in audience engagement, community building, and brand positioning apply equally well to emerging fintech companies competing for attention in crowded markets.

Team dynamics also shaped his thinking. “I learned a lot about team building; we had a phenomenal team at BlockFi, many of whom are staying in the crypto industry, and some have even started new crypto companies, which makes me proud,” Prince said. This perspective—viewing former colleagues’ departures as validation of the organization’s culture and talent development—reveals sophisticated leadership thinking beyond pure business metrics.

BlockFi’s Remarkable Recovery: From Bankruptcy to Full Client Recovery

Meanwhile, the broader BlockFi saga continues its remarkable turnaround. The platform’s bankruptcy settlement with the estates of FTX and Alameda Research—announced in 2024—has positioned the company for full recovery on behalf of clients, a outcome that seemed improbable during crypto winter.

Prince’s personal commitment to this resolution remained unwavering. “As part of our bankruptcy process, I always kept all of my crypto at BlockFi. I said I’d give up any recovery rights to my crypto until BlockFi clients get 100% back,” he stated. This decision symbolized leadership accountability during the crisis.

The bankruptcy itself stemmed from a specific transaction structure. BlockFi had lent substantial cryptocurrency assets to FTX and Alameda Research under terms fully disclosed to clients. When FTX collapsed and the affiliated entities did not repay the loans, BlockFi faced insolvency. During Sam Bankman-Fried’s trial, Prince testified about this sequence of events and the negotiations that followed.

“At the beginning of our bankruptcy, the lawyers for FTX took a hostile position, claiming BlockFi owed them money, which we found absurd since FTX and its affiliates owed us money,” Prince recalled. The legal battle eventually resolved in BlockFi’s favor—a validation that resonated deeply with Prince and the remaining team members focused on client recovery.

The financial trajectory illustrates the market’s initial pessimism. In January 2023, during the depths of crypto winter, bankruptcy claims related to BlockFi were trading at 30 cents on the dollar—meaning investors purchasing these claims would recover only 30 cents for every dollar of face value. The eventual path to full client recovery means that those who held their positions or purchased claims at depressed prices secured substantial returns. “The people that bought the bankruptcy claims made a killing,” Prince observed, noting the disparity between early pessimism and eventual outcomes.

Prince reflected on what BlockFi would do differently in retrospect: the most significant regret centered on the relationship with FTX. However, his focus remained forward-looking. “I testified at the SBF trial, which was helpful in terms of enabling justice through a guilty verdict, but the real goal and focus for me (and the remaining BlockFi team) was and remains to return as much value to clients as possible,” he wrote in a recent statement.

Zac Prince’s career trajectory—from founding a transformative crypto lending platform through navigating bankruptcy and toward building accessibility in real estate finance—demonstrates how expertise and leadership transcend industry boundaries. His shift from crypto to real estate technology, informed by lessons learned from both BlockFi’s successes and its trials, positions him to shape emerging sectors with battle-tested operational discipline and customer-first philosophy.