Wintermute sees revenue plunge but CEO remains optimistic: Forbes

Markets • December 20, 2022, 8:54AM EST

Quick Take

Wintermute booked $225 million in revenue during the first nine months of 2022, Forbes reported.
That’s a far cry from the $1 billion it brought in last year.

Digital asset trading firm Wintermute booked $225 million in revenue during the first nine months of 2022, compared to $1 billion for all of 2021, Forbes reported.

In 2021, the firm — led by former Optiver trader Evgeny Gaevoy — reported $582 million in profit. Wintermute has $400 million in equity and $720 million in assets, Gaevoy told the magazine.

The CEO received $12 million last year in the form of dividends paid to shareholders.

Gaevoy told Forbes he is preparing for another 2021-like year, noting that "we don't necessarily care about making the most now because it'll be just a tiny fraction of the bull markets that can come."

Underpinning the firm's revenue slump this year was a broader credit crunch that forced some of its competitors to step back from certain trading or lending activity or to declare bankruptcy. That's been coupled with a steep decline in trading volumes, which firms like Wintermute rely on to turn an outsized profit.

Wintermute also got hit by a $160 million hack on the firm's decentralized finance operation in September.

About Author

Frank Chaparro is the Editor At Large at The Block. Chaparro started his career at Business Insider, where he specialized in the intersection of digital assets and Wall Street, market structure, and financial technology. Soon after joining Business Insider out of Fordham University, Chaparro was interviewing top finance and tech executives, including billionaire Mark Cuban, “Flash Boys” star Brad Katsuyama, Cboe Global Markets CEO Ed Tilly, and New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley. In 2018, he become a sought after reporter in the crypto world, interviewing luminaries such as Tyler Winklevoss, the cofounder of Gemini, Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of Circle, and Fundstrat head Tom Lee. He runs his own podcast The Scoop and writes a biweekly eponymous newsletter. He leads special projects, including The Block's flagship podcast, The Scoop. Prior to The Block, he held roles at Business Insider, NPR, and Nasdaq. For inquiries or tips, email [email protected].