Israel-based AlgoZ, a digital asset management platform, has launched Algoz Quant Pro, aiming to eliminate counterparty risks faced by investors, Finance Magnates learned exclusively. The company tapped the services of a custody platform and is using Bitfinix for off-exchange settlements.
“The wallet holds the coins entrusted and protects it from being hacked or malfeasant. It protects it in the way it would, but it’s held in trust. It’s not the asset of the custodian,” Stephen Wundke, the Global Business Development Director at AlgoZ, explained to Finance Magnates. “The customer puts the coins directly into that wallet.”
AlgoZ launched the product when several crypto exchanges were facing allegations of the comingling of customer funds. With such allegations, the US securities market regulator legally moved against Binance and Kraken, two major crypto exchange venues. Now-collapsed FTX, the second-largest crypto exchange at its peak, also used customer funds illegally.
“We’ve completely eliminated the exchange and management counterparty loss. So, if all three parties in this relationship go broke, the customer is never affected. They still retain their coins,” Wundke added.
He further highlighted that similar products to reduce counterparty risks already exist in the market and added: “It’s different because we’ve made it in such a way that we never touch the clients’ funds. It never comes through us.”
Rising Crypto Investment Demand
Tal Teperberg, Group CEO at AlgoZ
AlgoZ offers quantitative trading services with cryptocurrencies. It was established in 2016 by Tal Teperberg, who is now the Group CEO. Apart from the recently launched Quant Pro, the company also offers a few other trading strategies.
The products offered by the company are available to both US and non-US customers. However, only professional and accredited investors, with a minimum investment of $100,000 in cryptocurrencies, can opt for investment through AlgoZ’s strategies.
“We are targeting affluent investors because they have to be accredited investors now. I think we might be able to change that in the future simply because we never touch the client funds,” Wundke added.
AlgoZ is additionally trying to disrupt the existing hedge funds. Although both charge a 2 percent management fee to the investors, the Israeli company is offering a different model for success fees.
“The normal hedge fund model is a 2 percent management fee and a 20 percent success fee. With us, it’s…
