(Bloomberg) -- Bitfarms Ltd. said it had fired its outgoing interim president and chief executive officer, after the executive filed a lawsuit against the crypto miner claiming $27 million in damages for breach of contract among other issues.

Geoffrey Morphy, who was appointed to both positions in late 2022, was announced on March 25 to be leaving the Toronto-based company, pending a search for his replacement. Morphy has now been terminated effective immediately and no longer serves as a director of the company, Bitfarms said in a statement on Monday.

Morphy filed a claim against Bitfarms in the Superior Court of Ontario on Friday, the company said, requesting a payout for an alleged breach of contract, wrongful dismissal and aggravated and punitive damages. “The company believes the claims are without merit and intends to defend itself vigorously,” Bitfarms said. Morphy didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

Nicolas Bonta, Bitfarms’s chairman and co-founder, has been appointed interim president and CEO while the hunt for a permanent replacement is ongoing. The search is nearing completion, Bitfarms said, with plans to appoint a new CEO “in the next several weeks.”

The Bitcoin mining industry is facing a variety of headwinds in 2024, ranging from elevated energy prices and increasing competition to the aftermath of an April software-code update known as the “halving,” which drastically reduced their main source of revenue. While Bitcoin prices soared in the first quarter, production of new coins plunged as mining difficulty, which is a measure of the computing power needed to create Bitcoin tokens, surged in the same period.  

Read More: Key Measure of Bitcoin Mining Profitability Nears All-Time Low

Shares of Bitfarms have declined around 40% this year. The stock closed at $1.73 on Friday. 

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