OCEAN co-founder Luke Dashjr left the Bitcoin mining pool on Aug. 29 after reaching a mutual separation agreement with its parent company, Mummolin Inc., resigning as chairman, chief technology officer and director.
Different Visions for Bitcoin Mining
OCEAN and Dashjr attributed the separation to "different visions for the future of Bitcoin mining following the recent protocol developments." The statement did not identify the developments or explain the areas of disagreement. The wording does not confirm whether a single Bitcoin protocol proposal caused the split.
Mummolin also repurchased all of Dashjr's equity, ending his ownership interest in the Bitcoin mining pool entirely. Neither party disclosed the value of the repurchase or Dashjr's former ownership percentage. Dashjr had already stepped back from his OCEAN responsibilities earlier in August.
Dashjr to Pursue Bitcoin Mining Through CONVOY
Dashjr plans to create a new venture called CONVOY. The joint statement said the project would continue his mission of decentralizing Bitcoin mining. No official website, technical documentation or launch schedule was available at publication time. The statement did not explain whether CONVOY will operate a mining pool, develop mining software or pursue another infrastructure model.
Dashjr previously founded Eligius, an early Bitcoin mining pool, before helping launch OCEAN in 2023. OCEAN was designed to give miners greater visibility into block templates and deliver block rewards directly to miners through a non-custodial system. The new venture suggests Dashjr intends to pursue those decentralization goals independently.
OCEAN Continues Non-Custodial Pool Operations
OCEAN said it will continue serving miners through its transparent, non-custodial mining pool. Its model sends mining rewards directly to participating miners instead of holding payouts in a pool-controlled account. The company operates through Bitcoin Ocean LLC, a subsidiary of Wyoming-based Mummolin. It raised $6.2 million to develop decentralized mining infrastructure in a 2023 seed round led by Jack Dorsey and other investors.
OCEAN later introduced DATUM, a protocol intended to let individual miners construct their own block templates while still participating in pooled mining. In April 2025, Tether committed mining hashrate to OCEAN, including capacity from its operations in Africa and other regions. OCEAN has not announced any change to that arrangement following Dashjr's departure.
What Happens Next
OCEAN must clarify its leadership structure and technical roadmap after losing its co-founder, chairman and chief technology officer. CONVOY's next step will be publishing details about its team, technology and intended services. The equity repurchase completes Dashjr's corporate separation from OCEAN, but the limited announcement leaves the underlying technical disagreement unresolved.
