The CEO of a Southlake-based supply chain technology firm bought a $16.1 million private jet in early 2021, around the time the company was raising its second round of funding and just before it ran out of money to pay its workers.
Chris Kirchner, CEO of Slync, told board members and investors that his successful cryptocurrency investments allowed him to buy the aspirational Gulfstream G550 aircraft, according to court documents.
When a Twitter user asked if he was worth more than $6 million, Kirchner replied in a now-deleted tweet, “Well, I paid cash for my plane. … so yes.”
Kirchner, 35, has since been fired from the heavily-backed startup and charged with fraud by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice for allegedly stealing company funds for personal use, including the jet. He’s also accused of making false promises to investors in the capital raises. He faces 20 years in prison.
Of the $67 million the company collected from Goldman Sachs and other investors in 2020 and 2021, Kirchner stole $28 million to “fund his lavish lifestyle,” according to the SEC complaint. He spent $495,000 on a luxury suite at a North Texas sports stadium, about $22,000 on membership fees for a private golf club in Westlake, over $902,000 on personal credit card charges and about $274,000 for luxury concierge services for his private jet.
Kirchner needed permission from his chief of staff to transfer more than $100,000 out of the company’s main bank account, according to the complaint. Before purchasing his plane, he messaged the chief of staff that he needed to transfer millions out because there was a “big week coming up” for the company.
He sold the aircraft in August 2022 for $17 million to help pay off his debts.
Kirchner’s lawyer, Toby Galloway, declined an interview request. Attempts to reach Kirchner by phone and email were unsuccessful.
Slync spokesman Greg Kefer said the company is cooperating with the government investigations and “as a victim of Christopher Kirchner’s actions, looks forward to a just resolution of this matter.” The company has a new CEO, John Urban, whom Kirchner hired as a strategic adviser in 2018.
“We’re not looking back, but rather moving on,” Kefer said.
A charming salesman
Kirchner helped found Slync in 2017, wanting to build a Salesforce-like platform for supply chain logistics. It was incorporated in Delaware with headquarters in California and later moved to Texas in 2020.
While the business may have started slower, raising about $2 million before January 2020, it struck gold when the COVID pandemic disrupted the supply chain.
Between March 2020 and May 2021, Kirchner guided the company through two funding rounds that raised over $67 million, with the second led by Goldman Sachs.
He was a born salesman, according to former employees who asked to remain anonymous to distance themselves from the company’s downfall.
“You were quickly inclined to believe him because he’s convincing,” said one former employee who left last year. “As long as you’re on his good side, he’s very chummy and wants to be your buddy.”
The former employee said Kirchner was rarely in the office, telling employees he was flying to meetups with venture capitalists and customers, although they often didn’t see anything come from those trips.
Kirchner helped the company land several sports sponsorships, including becoming the official logistics partner of the Dallas Stars. According to The Athletic, the company didn’t make its payments to the NHL team, owing over $800,000 as of last summer.
In 2022, Slync became the title sponsor of the iconic European Tour event, the Dubai Desert Classic, which hosts top golfers like Rory McIlroy and Sergio García.
Kirchner was front and center, photographed next to His Highness Sheikh Ahmed awarding the 2022 trophy to winner Viktor Hovland.
The facade crumbles
Kirchner attended Butler University in 2006 and 2007 to study marketing before transferring to the University of Kentucky, where he was enrolled in the spring and fall of 2009 and later in the fall of 2015, working toward a bachelor’s degree in communication. Both universities confirmed he didn’t graduate.
The scheme Kirchner is accused of running — faking revenue figures for investors, raking in the capital, then sometimes immediately transferring it to his bank account — began to fall apart last April when the company failed to pay employees.
One of the first public signs of financial trouble came that same month when Kirchner was named the preferred bidder to acquire the English soccer team Derby County, but failed to produce the funds and eventually withdrew his offer.
In an open letter to Derby County fans, he said, “In business, I believe in transparency, trust, humility and respecting authority.”
At the same time, Slync, once valued at $240 million, was late to pay its employees at least six times between April and June, according to court documents. Employees became concerned.
In August, Jason Selvidge, the company’s vice president of engineering from 2019 to 2022, sued Slync and Kirchner for failure to pay employees on time and for wrongful termination.
Only a few months earlier, Kirchner purchased a Ferrari after previously stating the company was “out of money” and couldn’t pay employees, the lawsuit alleges. Selvidge and the company’s former CFO Samar Kamdar brought up concerns about the company’s finances and were subsequently fired within a few days, according to the lawsuit.
Kirchner used company funds “as a personal piggy bank” and was a “disinterested” CEO that some employees referred to as a “ghost” because of how often he was gone, the lawsuit alleges.
Guido d’Amico, who joined the company as a senior engineering director at Slync in December 2021, also joined in on the lawsuit. He said he resigned July 1, 2022 because Kirchner consistently failed to pay employees on time and he had not been paid for nearly two months.
Both former employees say they have past-due wages owed to them.
On July 24, 2022, Kirchner was suspended by the board. On July 26, counsel for Slync’s board alleged Kirchner had tried deleting certain electronic records and ordered him to return company equipment, according to court documents. On Aug. 4, he was fired.
The former male employee who spent three years at the company said he’s sad with how things turned out because he was proud of what Slync created. He said the experience has changed how he works.
“At my new job, I say, ‘Show me the evidence,’” he said.
In August, the FBI began investigating Kirchner and requested an arrest warrant on Feb. 10, 2023. On Valentine’s Day, the agency searched his 6,000-square-foot Westlake mansion estimated to be worth $4 million. The search warrant was sealed so it’s unknown what was seized.
What’s next for Kirchner, Slync?
Slync hasn’t seemed to miss Kirchner’s salesmanship. At the beginning of the year, the company hauled in another $24 million in funding led by Goldman Sachs, bringing the total amount raised by the company to more than $100 million.
The value of the company’s technology is “significant,” said Goldman Sachs partner Darren Cohen in an announcement about the funding.
“During the COVID pandemic, loaded container ships anchored offshore and empty store shelves showed everyone what happens when the international supply chain breaks down,” he said. “We believe the Slync platform provides an innovative solution that brings the global logistics industry fully into the digital realm.”
Goldman Sachs spokeswoman Mary Athridge declined to comment further on Kirchner or the firm’s additional investment in Slync. U.S. Attorney spokeswoman Erin Dooley and FBI spokeswoman Melinda Urbina also declined to discuss the case.
Kirchner was released after his arrest but can’t travel outside North Texas without permission and can’t contact current or former Slync employees, investors or clients, according to a court order setting conditions of his release.
He isn’t expected to stand trial until at least May 6, 2024, according to a joint scheduling report.
A former female employee of the company said she isn’t surprised to see Kirchner accused of fraud because she always wondered where he was getting enough money for his large purchases while employees had trouble getting paid.
Kirchner talked a “big, impressive game” that convinced her to buy into his vision and join his startup, but didn’t keep it up, she said.
“He just didn’t really seem to be leading the company the way a good CEO does and like I initially thought he was when I joined,” she said. “The facade sort of crumbled quickly.”
