What SFOX does

SFOX is a cryptocurrency prime dealer founded in 2014 that serves institutional investors, hedge funds, family offices, crypto exchanges, asset managers, and financial institutions through a unified digital asset trading and infrastructure platform. The company aggregates liquidity from 30+ providers across 80+ markets and has processed over $600 billion in cumulative transaction volume since inception, capturing 10-20% of BTCUSD trading volume at peak. The company is headquartered in San Francisco (historically 'San Francisco Open Exchange') with operational entities in the United States (sFOX, Inc.; sFOX Services Inc.; SAFE Trust Company), Singapore (sFOX Pte. Ltd.), the British Virgin Islands (sFOX International Ltd.), and most recently Dubai via a partnership with Laser Digital.

The product stack centers on an institutional-grade trading platform featuring smart order routing across 30+ liquidity providers and more than 15 proprietary algorithmic order types — TWAP, Sniper, Hare, Tortoise, Polar Bear, Gorilla — designed for best-price execution. Underlying this is patented custody technology operated through SAFE Trust Company, a Wyoming Division of Banking-regulated trust providing cold storage, SOC 2 Type II compliance, and $200 million in insurance coverage from Lloyd's of London syndicates. The sFOX Connect platform is a modular infrastructure offering with seven integrated modules enabling financial institutions and developers to build and scale crypto and stablecoin financial products, and represents the company's primary forward-looking growth vector. Complementary services include staking, post-trade settlement credit, prime brokerage-style white-glove support, and a developer API with JavaScript SDK.

sFOX generates revenue through multiple streams: transaction-based trading fees on cryptocurrency execution, recurring custody fees through SAFE Trust Company, usage-based staking service fees, and a $50 monthly inactivity fee applied after three months of account dormancy. The go-to-market combines direct enterprise field sales to institutional clients with an API-first developer platform targeting financial institutions and fintechs. Backed by Y Combinator, Khosla Ventures, and Social+Capital (with a $23M Series A in 2018 led by Social Capital and Tribe Capital), the company is positioned as a regulated institutional gateway into digital asset markets. In March 2026, founder Akbar Thobhani transitioned from CEO to Founder and Visionary, with Javier Martinez appointed as CEO to lead an institutional scaling phase anchored on sFOX Connect.

Name

SFOX

Legal name

sFOX, Inc.

Website

https://sfox.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

SFOX is an institutional cryptocurrency prime dealer serving hedge funds, family offices, crypto exchanges, asset managers, and financial institutions with aggregated liquidity, regulated custody, and modular digital asset infrastructure. Founded in 2014, it has processed $600B+ in volume for 2,000+ businesses globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Institutional Digital Asset Trading Infrastructure

NAICS

Securities and Commodity Exchanges (52321), Other Financial Investment Activities (5239), Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)

SIC

Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200), Security Brokers, Dealers & Flotation Companies (6211), Finance Services (6199)

akta.pro primary industry

Crypto Custody & Exchange Wallet Services (Integrated) (FSADAAAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

Margin Trading & Collateralized Borrowing (Exchange-Operated) (FSADAAAL), Syndicated Crypto Loans & Credit Facilities (FSADAFAK)

Keywords

• Institutional crypto trading
• Digital asset custody
• Crypto liquidity aggregation
• Stablecoin infrastructure
• Crypto prime brokerage

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Trading Fees: Transaction-based fees charged on cryptocurrency trades executed through the platform. Fees vary depending on the pricing methodology or algorithm chosen to execute the transaction. sFOX may also receive remuneration from counterparties on a portion of charges, commissions or fees.
2. Custody Services: Digital asset custody services through SAFE Trust Company. Revenue generated from custody fees, with free service up to $250,000 in assets under custody for initial onboarding.
3. Staking Services: Technological services facilitating staking of cryptocurrency in proof-of-stake networks. sFOX charges a technological fee for facilitating staking, displayed within user accounts prior to staking.
4. Inactivity Fees: $50 per month fee charged after three months of account inactivity with no trading or funding activity.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

SFOX is an institutional cryptocurrency prime dealer that aggregates liquidity from 30+ providers across 80+ markets to deliver smart-routed trade execution, advanced algorithmic order types, and white-glove prime services to professional traders, hedge funds, family offices, crypto exchanges, asset managers, and financial institutions. Its offering spans a trading platform, regulated digital asset custody via the Wyoming-chartered SAFE Trust Company, a modular crypto and stablecoin infrastructure platform (sFOX Connect), staking, post-trade settlement credit, and a developer API for embedding digital asset capabilities.

Product overview

sFOX is a comprehensive institutional digital asset trading and infrastructure platform offering a unified ecosystem of interconnected services. The core platform centers on the sFOX Trading Platform providing intelligent order routing and execution across 30+ liquidity providers and 80+ markets, supported by deep aggregated liquidity. The sFOX Connect modular infrastructure platform (featuring seven integrated modules) enables businesses to build and scale crypto and stablecoin products. Complementary services include SAFE Trust custody (Wyoming-regulated with $200M insurance), staking, post-trade settlement credit, prime services, and API access. The platform serves 2,000+ institutional businesses globally with over $600B in transaction volume since 2014.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• sFOX SAFE: A digital asset custody solution built in partnership with SAFE Trust Company, offering bankruptcy-protected storage and $200 million insurance cover from Lloyd's of London. SOC 2 compliant, regulated by Wyoming Division of Banking.
• sFOX Connect

Products and services

• sFOX Trading Platform Institutional-grade cryptocurrency trading platform offering intelligent smart-routing order execution across 30+ liquidity providers and 80+ markets, with advanced order types (TWAP, Sniper, Hare, Tortoise, Polar Bear, Gorilla, IOC, Stop, Trailing Stop) for hedge funds, asset managers, crypto exchanges, and other professional market participants.
• sFOX Liquidity Aggregated liquidity service that connects institutional clients to 30+ liquidity providers across 80+ markets, providing 10x deeper orderbook liquidity than any single exchange, with smart routing for price improvement and reduced slippage.
• sFOX SAFE Trust (Digital Asset Custody) Regulated digital asset custody solution powered by SAFE Trust Company, a Wyoming public trust company regulated by the Wyoming Division of Banking, offering cold storage with patented security, SOC 2 compliance, bankruptcy protection, and $200M of insurance coverage from Lloyd's of London syndicates led by Arch Syndicate 2012.
• sFOX Staking Proof-of-stake staking service enabling clients to earn rewards by participating in transaction validation on PoS blockchain networks, with a technological service fee disclosed to clients prior to staking.
• sFOX Connect Modular crypto and stablecoin infrastructure platform with seven integrated modules that enables financial institutions, fintechs, and developers to embed compliant digital asset capabilities—trading, custody, payments, stablecoins—into their products and launch enterprise crypto services in days rather than months.
• sFOX Credit (Post-Trade Settlement) Customizable credit and post-trade settlement solution providing maximum operational efficiency for institutional clients by enabling flexible settlement terms alongside trading and custody.
• sFOX Prime Services White-glove prime services covering the full trade lifecycle, including custody, clearing, flexible settlement, best-price execution, and robust reporting, delivered from a single account without requiring multiple service providers.
• sFOX API Developer API providing programmatic access to advanced trading features, liquidity, execution algorithms, and integration capabilities, with a JavaScript SDK for building custom crypto trading applications and embedding sFOX functionality into client products.

Quantifiable outcome

• $600B+ transaction volume processed since 2014 founding
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments7 records

Ideal customer profiles7 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Laser Digital (Nomura)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 18 November 2025Joint institutional liquidity offering between sFOX and Laser Digital, the digital assets arm of Nomura Group. Collaboration launched in Dubai and New York to provide enhanced liquidity, execution quality, and operational efficiency for institutional clients in digital asset markets, leveraging both firms' expertise and regulatory compliance.
• SAFE Trust CompanycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSAFE Trust Company is sFOX's strategic partner for digital asset custody services. SAFE is the first-ever digital asset trust company regulated by the Wyoming Division of Banking. The partnership provides bankruptcy protection and $200M insurance coverage through Lloyd's of London.
• Lloyd's of LondoncoreOthersInsurance coverage of $200 million from Lloyd's of London syndicates (led by Arch Syndicate 2012) for physical destruction of cryptocurrency private keys

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Galaxy Digital: Public crypto financial services firm offering institutional trading, prime brokerage, asset management, and digital asset custody. Competes directly with sFOX across institutional execution and custody while also offering broader investment banking services.
• Kraken (Institutional): Major crypto exchange with institutional OTC, staking, and custody services competing with sFOX for institutional traders and asset managers, particularly for clients seeking exchange-native execution.
• FalconX: Institutional crypto prime brokerage offering aggregated liquidity, trading, credit, and custody. FalconX is the closest direct competitor to sFOX, serving hedge funds, asset managers, and corporate treasuries with a similar full-stack institutional model.
• Wintermute: Global algorithmic trading firm and OTC liquidity provider in digital assets, serving institutional clients. Wintermute competes with sFOX in aggregated liquidity provision and OTC execution.
• Cumberland / DRW: Institutional crypto liquidity and trading arm of DRW Holdings, providing OTC trading and prime brokerage services. Cumberland is a direct competitor for institutional liquidity and execution, particularly for large-block trades.
• BitGo: Institutional digital asset custodian and prime broker offering custody, trading, lending, and clearing services. Competes with sFOX SAFE on custody and increasingly on prime brokerage, with deep institutional client overlap.
• Coinbase Prime: Institutional prime brokerage arm of Coinbase, offering trading, custody, and financing to institutional clients. Coinbase Prime is a direct competitor with a much larger balance sheet and broader product suite, serving similar institutional segments as sFOX.

Emerging players

• Circle: Issuer of USDC stablecoin with growing institutional trading and treasury services. Circle increasingly overlaps with sFOX Connect's stablecoin infrastructure capabilities and competes for institutional digital asset flows.
• Fireblocks: Digital asset custody and infrastructure platform serving institutions, exchanges, and fintechs with wallet, custody, and settlement technology. Competes with sFOX on custody (SAFE) and increasingly on stablecoin/payments infrastructure via sFOX Connect.
• Zero Hash: Embedded crypto and stablecoin infrastructure platform enabling fintechs and banks to offer digital asset services. Competes with sFOX Connect in the API-first institutional infrastructure layer, particularly for stablecoin and payment flows.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/sfox
• YouTubeyoutube.com/@sfoxtrading
• Facebookfacebook.com/sfoxtrading
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sfox
• Instagraminstagram.com/sfoxtrading

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors13 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SFOX