OPNX finally reveals names of investors willing to back 3AC founders' latest venture
Quick Take
- Two weeks after launching its new exchange, OPNX announced the names of the firms willing to back Su Zhu and Kyle Davies in their latest endeavor.
- The pair were behind last year’s spectacular implosion of the crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.
- Several of the purported investors subsequently denied they had given money to OPNX.
OPNX, the crypto exchange founded by Su Zhu and Kyle Davies following the collapse of their hedge fund Three Arrows Capital (3AC), revealed the identities of its investors for the first time.
The firm's backers include Taiwanese venture capital firm AppWorks, high-frequency trading firm Susquehanna and the VC arm of trading firm DRW, OPNX said in a tweet thread. The other investors announced include: MIAX Group, a U.S. equity options exchange; the Hong Kong unit of China Merchant Bank; Token Bay Capital, a Hong Kong investment fund; the VC firm Nascent; and Tuwaiq, a Saudi Arabian digital asset fund.
After the publication of OPNX's tweets, DRW, Susquehanna, Nascent and MIAX all denied involvement in the fundraising, although Nascent said it had purchased the exchange's flex tokens.
While financial terms weren't disclosed, Zhu told the Wall Street Journal in February that OPNX raised about $25 million in funding for the project.
OPNX, which launched earlier this month, is Zhu and Davies' shot at redemption after Three Arrows Capital imploded last year. The former classmates teamed up with Coinflex CEO Mark Lamb to launch the venture via a rebranding of the erstwhile derivatives venue. The exchange intends to support trading in bankruptcy claims tied to failed exchanges, like Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX. Lamb's wife, Leslie Lamb, is the firm's chief executive officer.
OPNX's Hong Kong headquarters
The new exchange confirmed today that it has set up shop in Hong Kong. It had previously been reported to be based in Dubai.
OPNX's investors "contributed not just capital, but also incredible feedback throughout the process of refining our vision, product offerings, tokenomics, legal framework & decision to relocate to HK," the exchange said. "It was their commitment to help the industry, together, that made OPNX happen."
OPNX has had a slow start, seeing just $13.64 in volume across both spot and perpetual derivatives trading in its first 24 hours.
Update: story updated to add denials from purported investors.
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