Via bitget.com
The crypto-native market maker is betting big on equities, commodities, and FX as digital asset volumes slide by a third
Wintermute, one of the largest algorithmic trading firms in crypto, is committing roughly $1 billion over five years to build out high-frequency trading systems and AI data-center infrastructure. The goal: transform from a crypto market maker into a full-service trading firm that can compete with the likes of Jane Street and Citadel Securities.
That’s an ambitious target for a company founded around 2017 that made its name providing liquidity to digital asset markets. But CEO Evgeny Gaevoy appears to be reading the room. In an interview with Bloomberg, he acknowledged that average daily trading volumes at the firm have dropped from about $15 billion last year to $10 billion this year as crypto markets have cooled.
The pivot to traditional finance #
Wintermute isn’t just talking about entering traditional markets. It’s already taken concrete regulatory steps. The firm’s US affiliate has registered as a broker-dealer with the SEC and joined FINRA, unlocking the ability to trade equities and related products on American exchanges.
Right now, non-crypto trading accounts for roughly 10% of Wintermute’s revenue. The company wants to flip that ratio dramatically, targeting more than 50% of revenue from traditional markets by the end of 2027. To make that happen, Wintermute plans to double its New York team, currently sitting at 17 people, and grow its global workforce by 40% over the coming year. The $1 billion in spending will be funded entirely from retained earnings, meaning the firm isn’t raising outside capital or taking on debt to finance the expansion.
Why HFT and AI infrastructure matter #
The investment isn’t just about hiring traders and getting regulatory licenses. The bulk of the capital is earmarked for two areas: high-frequency trading systems and AI data-center capabilities.
Wintermute already processes over $3.5 trillion in annual trading volume across more than 70 venues. That kind of scale generates enormous datasets, which are exactly the fuel AI models need to improve.
A broader industry shift #
The firm has also been expanding within the digital asset ecosystem itself. Wintermute has moved into prediction markets and tokenized gold trading, areas that sit at the intersection of crypto infrastructure and real-world use cases.
Gaevoy’s firm became especially prominent after the collapse of FTX in late 2022, when it stepped in as one of the key liquidity providers during a period of extreme market stress. At peak times, Wintermute was processing daily trading volumes of $3 billion to $5 billion, cementing its reputation as a reliable counterparty when the industry needed one most.
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