Perpetuals.com, a cryptocurrency derivatives platform, began trading on the Nasdaq Stock Market on , under the ticker symbol PDC. This marks a significant step for the company, which aims to bridge traditional finance with the blockchain-based crypto world. Notably, Patrick Gruhn, CEO of Perpetuals.com, is the first German manager to lead a Nasdaq-listed technology company since BioNTech founder Ugur Sahin in .
Perpetuals.com specializes in crypto derivatives, specifically focusing on a new instrument called Barrier Futures. These futures contracts are designed to address a key problem in the crypto derivatives market: liquidation cascades. Traditional perpetual futures contracts, while offering high leverage, can trigger a chain reaction of forced liquidations during market downturns, exacerbating price drops. Barrier Futures aim to mitigate this risk by incorporating a built-in stop-loss mechanism without the slippage often associated with traditional stop-loss orders.
The core innovation of Barrier Futures lies in their fixed stop-loss functionality. Unlike conventional stop-loss orders that can be executed at varying prices during volatile market conditions (slippage), Barrier Futures have a predetermined barrier level. If the price of the underlying asset reaches this barrier, the contract is automatically closed, limiting potential losses. This feature is intended to protect traders from unexpected and substantial losses during rapid market declines. The company also claims this design reduces IT costs for exchanges.
The company’s origins are rooted in the turbulent FTX collapse. Gruhn and Robin Matzke were co-founders of Digital Assets, a firm acquired by Sam Bankman-Fried’s FTX in and rebranded as FTX EU. Following a lengthy legal process after FTX’s bankruptcy, they were able to repurchase the remaining assets of FTX EU and subsequently launched Perpetuals.com. This backstory underscores the company’s focus on security and transparency, particularly in light of the failures of centralized crypto exchanges.
Perpetuals.com leverages artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning to enhance its trading platform. The company’s AI system has been trained on over 11 billion trading histories across multiple major cryptocurrency exchanges. This data is analyzed using Nvidia machines to predict retail trading outcomes with what the company describes as “unprecedented accuracy.” This predictive capability is used to assess the risk associated with each trade, potentially shielding retail traders from high-risk positions through a system called BayesShield.
Beyond risk management, Perpetuals.com is also addressing the long-term security of digital assets. The company recognizes the potential threat posed by quantum computing to current cryptographic methods used to secure Bitcoin wallets. The “Harvest Now, Decrypt Later” principle highlights the risk that malicious actors could store encrypted data today, anticipating the availability of quantum computers capable of decrypting it in the future. Experts predict potential breakthroughs in quantum computing before .
To counter this threat, Perpetuals.com offers quantum-resistant self-custody wallets. These wallets utilize true entropy generated by hardware in the company’s Frankfurt data center to protect private keys. This approach aims to provide institutional-grade self-custody without relying on third-party custodians or hardware wallets. The company asserts that this system makes fraudulent activities, such as those experienced during the FTX collapse, technically impossible.
The company’s infrastructure is built on a Kronos X® SaaS platform hosted at Equinix FR2 Frankfurt, alongside EUREX and Deutsche Börse, and on the U.S. West Coast. This distributed infrastructure is designed to provide high availability and low latency for traders. Perpetuals.com is a licensed European MTF (Multilateral Trading Facility) operating with MiFID II approval and integrated self-clearing capabilities.
The move to list on Nasdaq represents a strategic shift for Perpetuals.com, providing access to capital markets and potentially more favorable conditions than venture capital funding. Gruhn suggests that many founders lose significant equity due to the liquidation preferences often embedded in venture capital deals. The company’s focus on regulated derivatives and innovative risk management tools positions it to capitalize on the growing demand for sophisticated trading instruments in the cryptocurrency market. Perpetuals.com is also planning to launch several retail-focused brands in the first and second quarters of .
