30-Year-Old Co-Founder of Crypto Trading Platform Dies “Unexpectedly” in His Sleep

Tiantian Kullander, a former Morgan Stanley trader who co-founded digital-asset trading platform Amber Group, died suddenly in his sleep.

Kullander was 30-years-old.

Kullander “passed away unexpectedly in his sleep” on Nov. 23, Amber said in a statement on its website on Friday.

“He led by example with his intellect, generosity, humility, diligence and creativity,” the firm added.

His cause of death wasn’t disclosed.

BREAKING REPORT: 30-Year-Old Crypto Firm Co-Founder Tiantian Kullander DIES SUDDENLY in His Sleep.. -GWP

— Chuck Callesto (@ChuckCallesto) November 26, 2022

Tiantian Kullander, Co-Founder of Crypto Firm Amber, Dies at 30 https://t.co/s2isvCaTqD

— Frank Chaparro (@fintechfrank) November 25, 2022

Below is the statement released by Amber Group:

It is with the deepest sadness and a heavy heart that we inform you of the passing of our friend and co-founder, Tiantian Kullander, who passed away unexpectedly in his sleep on November 23, 2022.

Tiantian (or “TT”, as he was lovingly known) was instrumental to the founding of Amber and a pillar of our success. He put his heart and soul into the company, in every stage of its growth. He led by example with his intellect, generosity, humility, diligence and creativity.

TT was a respected thought leader and widely recognized as a pioneer for the industry. His depth of knowledge, his willingness to collaborate and his desire to always help others benefited countless start-ups and individuals. His insights and creativity inspired many projects, people and communities.

Besides co-founding Amber and building it into a multi-billion fintech unicorn, TT sat on the Board of Fnatic (one of the world’s most successful e-sports organizations) and founded KeeperDAO (the first on-chain liquidity underwriter) before giving it back to its community.

We lost a great partner and a true friend in TT and words cannot express our sorrow at this time. TT’s legacy will live on and we will work even harder to make Amber the category-defining leader of our industry, as this was TT’s ambition and dream.

TT was a devoted husband, a loving father and a fierce friend. His passing is a tragedy and our thoughts and prayers are with his family. He is survived by his wife and their beloved son. We kindly request that you respect their privacy during this difficult time.

The crypto world was shocked to learn about Kullander’s sudden death.

Another shocker in the crypto world this week

Tiantian Kullander, the co-founder of crypto firm Amber who's known in the industry as TT, dies at 30 https://t.co/XwR3CAF0zc

— Justina Lee (@justinaknope) November 25, 2022

.@0xttk passed away on Nov 23rd. Tiantian Kullander, known as TT, was a cofounder of Amber Group and one of the leaders of CeFi and DeFi in Asia. We were fortunate to work closely with him as a venture partner. He died in his sleep.

Rest in peace, TT—you will be missed.

— Dragonfly ＞|＜ (@dragonfly_xyz) November 25, 2022

Our thoughts and prayers are with TT and his family.

Very proud to be partnered with a company you founded.

Rest in peace @0xttk @ambergroup_io https://t.co/g6yRi6Gndn

— LIFE – The DeFi Wallet (@LifeDefiCo) November 25, 2022

Zero Hedge added:

The crypto entrepreneur, nicknamed “TT,” started Amber in 2017 together with a group of former finance professionals, including Goldman Sachs Group and Morgan Stanley alumni. The company, whose backers include Singaporean state investment company Temasek Holdings, was in talks to raise about $100 million, Bloomberg reported earlier this month (although in light of recent events those plans have likely been put on hold).

As Bloomberg notes, five of Amber’s founders – Kullander, Michael Wu, Wayne Huo, Tony He and Luke Li – previously worked together on Morgan Stanley’s fixed-income trading floor in Hong Kong.