Principal Strategic Investments
We’re focused on
the future
Optiver’s Principal Strategic Investments team is focused on providing support to emerging companies shaping the future of financial markets. We invest on the basis of strategic relevance to our business, using our own capital, without the pressure to earn specific returns. Our experienced team of trading, technology and business development professionals seek to both learn from others and impart our markets knowledge and philosophy to the companies we support.
How we operate
As a proprietary trading firm solely trading and investing our own capital, we have the flexibility to invest in promising and relevant businesses – without predetermined size or return mandates or exit timelines.
As an investor, we offer experience gained over decades of trading and deploying tech at scale in the world’s most competitive markets. Our global network includes today’s leaders in financial markets and related infrastructure, and we offer international partnership capabilities to the companies we support.
Investment criteria
Strategic relevance and long-term innovation potential for our business are key, and we don’t have strict investment application criteria.
Our focus areas
Financial technology
We actively seek investment opportunities closely linked to our core market-making business. Examples are software and other technologies related to the capital markets, exchanges, trading platforms, clearing & settlement and brokerage (both B2B and B2C).
IT infrastructure
Companies building cutting-edge IT infrastructure are another focus area for us. This can encompass cybersecurity, cloud ecosystems, data processing and storage, analytics tools, development tools and more.
Digital assets
We’re interested in connecting with companies building products and services in the nascent blockchain ecosystem. This can range from token projects to digital asset exchanges and platforms, market structure and market data technologies.
Our portfolio
Our portfolio includes emerging companies across the full spectrum of financial technology, IT infrastructure and digital assets.
BUX is Europe’s fastest growing neobroker and has been making it easy and affordable for Europeans to do more with their money since 2014.
Gatsby is a reimagined stocks and options trading app that cuts through the jargon and makes retail investing accessible for everyone.
Equiduct is a pan-European exchange focused on delivering best-in-class services for the retail and institutional trading community
Options AI. One powerfully simple brokerage platform. The freedom to choose between stock, options and spreads, all from one chart. Turn great ideas into smarter trades.
Paradigm. Institutional-Grade Liquidity, Unified Across CeFi. Get the best price on large size and complex, multi-leg structures, settled at the venue of your choice.
Osaka Dojima Exchange (ODEX) aims to establish itself as a comprehensive exchange in Japan’s Kansai region offering instruments starting with precious metals, agricultural and index derivatives.
Expect more from your stocks, bonds and ETFs. With Sharegain, your securities don’t have to sit idle. Now you can unlock new revenue with full control, complete transparency and no new overheads.
Pyth connects high-fidelity market data from the world’s largest professional traders and exchanges to any smart contract, anywhere.
Sk3w utilizes a proprietary hardware and software stack to enable transparent and equal access to markets.
Hidden Road Partners is a global credit network for institutional investors, enabling seamless access to traditional and digital markets.
About our team
Our team is a diverse mix of ex-traders, developers, strategy and business development professionals with expertise across the full ecosystem of global financial markets. The team looks for innovation and is continually seeking to develop their own skill-sets, alongside those of the entrepreneurs and businesses they work with.
In the news
Read through some of the latest media coverage on Optiver and our associated ventures.
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August 2022
Social investment platform eToro to acquire fintech startup Gatsby for $50M
Multi-asset social investment network and Robinhood competitor eToro has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Gatsby — a fintech startup which also aimed to go head to head against Robinhood — for $50 million in a cash and common stock deal.
Israel-based eToro told TechCrunch this week that it just received approval from FINRA, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, to move forward with the acquisition. The company first filed for regulatory approval in December of 2021.
Jeff Myers and Ryan Belanger-Saleh co-founded Gatsby, a commission-free options and stock-trading app aimed at younger traders, in 2018. The pair had one previous successful exit in Dealtable.com, a social data room platform.Techcrunch.com -
February 2022
Optiver invests in innovative securities lending platform Sharegain.
Optiver.com
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November 2021
Options AI closes $4.1 million seed funding round to bring smarter options to retail investors
optionsai.com
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November 2021
How one startup is shaking up the consumer trading boom
techcrunch.com