Introduction: A New Era in Traditional Asset Trading
The financial world is witnessing a transformative shift with the introduction of AX, a pioneering exchange for perpetual futures in traditional asset classes. Founded by Brett Harrison, former president of FTX US, Architect Financial Technologies seeks to combine the high-octane, continuous trading features of crypto derivatives with the stability and diversity of conventional markets. With regulatory approval from the Bermuda Monetary Authority (BMA), AX aims to bring seamless, round-the-clock access to assets such as stocks, indexes, metals, and energies—ushering in a new chapter for global traders and financial institutions.
The Visionary Behind AX: Brett Harrison’s Mission
Brett Harrison, drawing on his extensive experience at top financial institutions like Citadel Securities, Jane Street, and FTX US, embarked on a mission to modernize finance. Observing the meteoric rise of perpetual futures in the cryptocurrency sector, Harrison saw an opportunity: what if these same innovative trading mechanisms could be applied to traditional financial assets? This idea formed the bedrock for AX, a next-generation exchange at the intersection of modern finance and crypto-inspired infrastructure.
Harrison’s decision to pursue regulatory approval in Bermuda highlights his commitment to both compliance and global accessibility. With US regulators still taking a cautious approach toward newer trading technologies, the Bermuda license allows AX to operate on an international scale with robust oversight, providing confidence to institutional and sophisticated individual traders.
What Sets AX Apart: The Fusion of Crypto and Traditional Markets
AX isn’t just another trading platform—it’s a fusion of best practices from crypto and traditional finance. At its core, the platform offers nonstop trading of perpetual futures contracts on a broad spectrum of conventional financial instruments, including:
- Global equities and major indexes
- Energy products and metals
- Commodity markets
- Emerging categories, such as renewable energy and AI-linked resources like rare earth metals and data center compute costs
By leveraging mechanisms familiar to cryptocurrency veterans—such as margining, flexible collateral options, sophisticated risk controls, and real-time price bands—AX delivers both the speed and the flexibility demanded by modern traders. Unlike traditional exchanges, AX does not restrict trading to regional business hours. Instead, it empowers users worldwide with true 24/7 access, aligning the trading landscape of stocks and commodities with that of digital assets.
Regulatory Foundation: Bermuda’s Strategic Advantage
Gaining regulatory approval from the Bermuda Monetary Authority was pivotal for AX. Bermuda has established itself as a forward-thinking, business-friendly jurisdiction for FinTech innovation. The BMA’s rigorous standards provide security and credibility, assuring global market participants that AX operates in a compliant manner.
This regulatory framework enables AX to cater to an international clientele—ranging from hedge funds and family offices to proprietary trading firms and qualified individual traders. As a result, AX sidesteps the fragmented regulatory hurdles present in more restrictive jurisdictions, accelerating its ability to offer state-of-the-art derivatives products on a global stage.
Advanced Technology Infrastructure for Seamless Access
Architect Financial Technologies has invested in cutting-edge infrastructure to ensure AX offers robust performance and ultra-low latency execution. The platform provides:
- Modern web-based user interfaces for intuitive trading
- High-speed APIs and SDKs in multiple programming languages for institutional integration
- Centralized clearing for all contracts, reducing counterparty risks
- An anonymous order book structure to drive deep, liquid markets
By partnering with technology leader Connamara Technologies, AX leverages a custom-built matching engine designed for minimal latency and high throughput—key features for serious traders and institutions seeking an edge in rapidly moving markets.
Perpetual Futures: The Crypto-Inspired Model for Traditional Assets
Perpetual futures contracts have dominated crypto trading volumes for several years, offering continuous, cash-settled exposure to underlying assets without the need for physical delivery or settlement dates. By transplanting this model into the world of stocks, commodities, and indices, AX empowers traders to hedge, speculate, or manage risk with previously unavailable efficiency and flexibility.
Key elements of the AX perpetual futures model include:
- Dynamic margining systems, mirroring those of leading crypto derivatives exchanges
- Independent pricing benchmarks to ensure fair and transparent settlement
- Portfolio margining across asset classes to maximize capital efficiency
- Integrated risk management to safeguard against adverse market moves
Unlike legacy futures, which stop trading at set hours and require physical or cash settlement, perpetual futures run continuously and settle via funding rates, allowing for uninterrupted position management and instant reaction to market events anywhere in the world.
The Institutional Focus: Who Can Trade on AX?
Architect Financial Technologies is initially targeting institutional participants with the AX platform. Current users include top-tier hedge funds, proprietary trading desks, family offices, and global liquidity providers. Thanks to its Bermuda regulatory structure, AX can also onboard other sophisticated parties globally, while individual traders can join a waitlist as the platform expands its offerings and regulatory approvals.
By focusing on institutional traders in the early stages, AX aims to foster deep liquidity and ensure that its market structure is both robust and resilient. However, the goal is ultimately to democratize access—offering efficient and fair markets to a broader global audience as legal frameworks evolve.
Series A Backing and Financial Strength
The launch of AX is underpinned by strong financial support. Architect Financial Technologies is in the midst of a Series A fundraising round, having already raised $17 million from industry powerhouses. Key investors include Coinbase Ventures, Circle Ventures, and Anthony Scaramucci’s SALT Fund. This capital injection is being used to expand the AX platform, develop new financial products, and increase the exchange’s international reach.
The involvement of renowned backers underscores the credibility of Architect’s mission and its potential to reshape the trading landscape for traditional assets. It also provides the resources necessary to invest in compliance, technology, and customer support—elements that are crucial for building a world-class, trusted exchange.
Opportunities and Challenges Ahead
While the launch of AX represents a major leap forward in market structure for conventional finance, significant challenges and opportunities lie ahead. The global interest in perpetual futures is enormous, but so are the demands for regulatory oversight, risk management, and investor protection. Architect’s team, with its blend of Wall Street know-how and crypto-native agility, is uniquely positioned to navigate this rapidly evolving landscape.
Harrison’s vision is not just to replicate the explosive success of crypto derivatives in the traditional arena, but also to innovate—adding new asset classes, improving capital efficiency, and ultimately breaking down the barriers imposed by regional trading hours, legacy infrastructure, and slow-moving regulation.
The Implications: Why Perpetual Futures in Traditional Finance Matter
The availability of perpetual futures for stocks, commodities, and indexes introduces groundbreaking flexibility for risk management and speculation. Traders gain the ability to express views on global financial events in real time, hedge portfolio risks continuously, or access emerging asset categories that previously had limited liquidity or accessibility.
For institutions, AX’s seamless, centrally cleared, and regulated environment could mean tighter spreads, deeper liquidity, and a more competitive market structure. For global markets, the move promises greater integration, efficiency, and inclusiveness—hallmarks of the best advances in modern finance.
Conclusion: AX as a Catalyst for Financial Innovation
Architect Financial Technologies’ launch of the AX exchange marks a major inflection point for the future of trading traditional assets. By fusing the flexibility and transparency of crypto derivatives with the trust and compliance of regulated venues, AX is unlocking new opportunities for investors, institutions, and the broader global market.
As regulatory environments continue to shift and technology accelerates, platforms like AX are poised to drive the next wave of financial innovation—delivering on the vision of a unified, 24/7, inclusive global marketplace.
