Crypto Market Maker Portofino Technologies Has Big Plans for 2025
The cryptocurrency trading company is considering opening new offices in New York and Singapore.
March 4, 2025 15:52 UTC
What you need to know:
- Portofino Technologies plans to open new offices in New York and Singapore.
- The crypto market maker recently appointed Deepak Shah as its head of OTC trading.
- According to Shah, the company aims to take a leading position in the market of electronic market making, over-the-counter trading and token services.
Portofino Technologies, a Swiss firm building a cryptocurrency market, has ambitious plans for 2025, CEO Leonard Lancia told CoinDesk in an exclusive interview.
According to Lanci, the crypto market maker is considering opening new offices in New York and Singapore.
The company is regulated in the UK, Switzerland and the British Virgin Islands and intends to expand its licensing in line with the EU Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) regulation, which came into force on December 30 last year.
Portofino has made a number of high-profile hires in recent months. Deepak Shah joined the company as head of over-the-counter (OTC) trading in London.
Shah previously worked at Japanese investment bank Nomura, where he headed the currency options trading department. He also has experience at Wall Street banks Citi (C) and Goldman Sachs (GS).
“While customer service and liquidity provision remain our top priority, we are committed to investing in trading and technology talent to grow and scale our business,” Shah said in emailed comments.
Portofino aims to establish leadership positions in three key segments of its business: electronic marketplace creation, over-the-counter trading and token services.
“We have already hired many highly skilled professionals in London and are planning further expansion in Asia and New York in the sales force,” Shah added.
Portofino was founded by two former Citadel Securities executives, Leonard Lancia and Alex Casimo, in 2021. The firm raised $50 million in equity funding in late 2022.
According to the company, its trading volume exceeded $100 billion in 2024.
The company is recovering from a series of layoffs last year, according to CoinDesk.
Read more: FCA-regulated crypto trading firm Portofino Technologies faces staff attrition
