Brett Harrison, former president of FTX US, is launching Architect Financial Technologies, a startup aimed at revolutionizing traditional finance by introducing perpetual futures contracts for assets like stocks, indexes, commodities, and foreign currencies. The platform, named AX, has secured regulatory approval in Bermuda through Architect Bermuda Ltd. and will operate a 24/7 exchange that accepts both fiat currencies and US dollar-backed stablecoins as collateral, enabling continuous global access even outside standard banking hours.
Architect has raised $17 million in its Series-A funding round from prominent investors, including Coinbase Ventures, Circle Ventures, and the SALT Fund. Harrison, who has extensive experience in high-frequency trading from roles at Citadel Securities and Jane Street Group, aims to leverage perpetual futures—non-expiring, leveraged contracts popularized in crypto by platforms like BitMEX and FTX—to enhance market efficiency and provide sophisticated trading tools for both professional and retail investors.
While perpetual futures have driven crypto trading volumes to $6.4 trillion monthly in 2025 from $35 billion in 2018, they are considered high-risk due to potential for devastating liquidations and have faced regulatory scrutiny, such as from the US CFTC in 2023 over inadequate safeguards. Architect's roadmap includes expanding into emerging asset classes like rare earth metals and renewable energy, capitalizing on growth in AI and cloud computing. The venture comes as US regulators limit domestic perpetual futures, creating an offshore innovation opportunity that could influence future markets, including planned Bitcoin and Ether perpetuals at Cboe Global Markets.
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