WWE Names Former Etsy Exec Kristina Salen CFO

Jill Goldsmith
·2 min read

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World Wrestling Entertainment has named former Etsy CFO Kristina Salen as chief financial officer reporting to chairman-CEO Vince McMahon effective August 3.

Salen was Etsy’s first chief financial officer, helping to scale the business leading the online craft marketplace’s IPO in 2017. She was CFO and chief operating officer of UnitedMasters, an artist services and music distribution company and most recently served in the CFO and COO roles at Moda Operandi, a luxury fashion platform.

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At Etsy, she helped grow the business from $895 million in gross sales to $3 billion in four years and built and managed its Business Development, Strategic Planning, Investor Relations, Accounting, Tax and Data Analytics functions.

Her background in finance includes managing a global media and telecom funds with Fidelity Investments and working as a financial analyst with Oppenheimer Capital, Merrill Lynch Investment Managers and Lazard Freres & Co.

Salen — on the board of directors of SiriusXM — replaces previous CFO George Barrios who left early this year. Frank Riddick has been serving ae interim CFO.

The Stamford, CT-based company, parent of WWE Network, has been hard hit along with all sports by the global pandemic. A controversy erupted In April when it was deemed an essential business in Florida and resumed pro-wrestling matches in Orlando without fans.

Also in April, the XFL filed for bankruptcy as a result of the coronavirus, leading to mass layoffs by the league that is owned by McMahon directly with the WWE holding the remaining interest. It had been slated for a 2021 return season.

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