Secure Digital Markets
Secure Digital Markets is a Toronto-based institutional digital asset brokerage providing spot trading, derivatives, and lending services to corporate treasuries, trading firms, miners, hedge funds, family offices, and brokerages worldwide.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2017
- HeadquartersToronto, Canada
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Secure Digital Markets does
Secure Digital Markets (SDM) is a Toronto-headquartered, privately held institutional digital asset brokerage founded in 2017. The firm operates three core service lines: spot trading of large-block and off-exchange transactions across 40+ trading pairs (including BTC, ETH, SOL, and a broad set of altcoin/USDT and USDC pairs), crypto derivatives trading through its US affiliate SDM Financial Inc. (restricted from Canadian residents), and institutional digital asset lending. Revenue is generated via transaction fees on quoted institutional trades, with pricing not publicly disclosed.
The platform's execution infrastructure supports GUI, API, and RFQ execution modes, complex order types (TWAP, VWAP, Iceberg), ultra-low-latency connectivity, and 24/7 client support across USD, EUR, CAD, and GBP. A recent technology extension layers Voltage's enterprise-grade Lightning Network infrastructure on top of the trading stack, enabling near-instant, near-zero-fee Bitcoin Layer 2 settlement for regulated institutions — demonstrated by a $1 million Lightning payment to Kraken in January 2026 that represents the largest publicly recorded seven-figure Lightning transaction to date.
SDM pursues an enterprise field sales go-to-market targeting eight institutional verticals: corporate treasuries, tokens/protocols, principal trading firms, payment processors, miners, hedge funds and asset managers, family offices, and brokerages/OTC desks. The legal structure consists of SDM Inc. (Canada) and SDM USA Inc., with SDM Financial Inc. providing derivatives to non-Canadian residents. Leadership includes co-founders David Shafrir (CEO), Zachary Friedman (CSO), and Mostafa Al-Mashita (EVP, Sales and Trading), with Alan Mittleman as COO. The firm cites over $10 billion in cumulative trading volume and is privately held with no disclosed venture funding rounds.
Secure Digital Markets firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Secure Digital Markets
- Legal name
- SDM Inc.
- Website
- https://securedigitalmarkets.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2017
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Secure Digital Markets is a Toronto-based institutional digital asset brokerage providing spot trading, derivatives, and lending services to corporate treasuries, trading firms, miners, hedge funds, family offices, and brokerages worldwide.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Secure Digital Markets industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Institutional Digital Asset Brokerage
- NAICS
- Securities and Commodity Contracts Intermediation and Brokerage (5231), Investment Banking and Securities Intermediation (523150)
- SIC
- Security & Commodity Brokers, Dealers, Exchanges & Services (6200), Commodity Contracts Brokers & Dealers (6221)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Institutional Spot Exchanges & Broker-Dealers (FSADAAAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Digital Asset/Crypto Trade Execution Platforms (FSAFANAO), Collateral Management & Margining (FSADAJAF), Digital Asset Custody (Institutional Crypto Custody) (FSAFAHAH)
Keywords
Where Secure Digital Markets is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Toronto
- HQ country
- Canada
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Secure Digital Markets business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others
Revenue model
- Trading Services: Large-block and off-exchange transactions in digital assets with execution via GUI, API, and RFQ. Revenue derived from transaction fees on spot liquidity across 40+ major trading pairs.
- Derivatives Trading: Crypto derivatives trading services provided through SDM Financial Inc. (US affiliate), available to non-Canadian residents with strict regulatory oversight.
- Digital Asset Lending: Institutional lending services for digital assets, enabling counterparties to access liquidity against crypto collateral.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels1 record
Marketing channels7 records
Secure Digital Markets product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Secure Digital Markets provides institutional investors with digital asset liquidity through three core services: (1) Spot Trading — large-block and off-exchange transactions across 40+ trading pairs executed via GUI, API, or RFQ; (2) Derivatives — crypto derivatives trading via US affiliate SDM Financial Inc.; and (3) Lending — institutional digital asset lending for treasury and liquidity needs. The firm serves corporate treasuries, principal trading firms, miners, payment processors, hedge funds, family offices, and brokerages/OTC desks.
Product overview
Secure Digital Markets is a digital asset brokerage platform providing institutional investors with liquidity solutions. The company operates a multi-module platform consisting of three core services: Trading (spot liquidity for large-block transactions with 40+ trading pairs and multiple execution methods), Derivatives (crypto derivatives offered through affiliate SDM Financial Inc.), and Lending (institutional digital asset lending). The platform targets corporate treasuries, trading firms, payment processors, miners, hedge funds, family offices, and brokerages/OTC desks, processing over $10 billion in trading volume across multinational banking infrastructure.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Institutional Spot Trading Institutional digital asset spot trading service specializing in large-block and off-exchange transactions. Offers GUI, API, and RFQ execution with 40+ major trading pairs, global currencies (USD, EUR, CAD, GBP), and complex order types including TWAP, VWAP, and Iceberg orders. Targeted at corporate treasuries, principal trading firms, miners, hedge funds, family offices, and brokerages/OTC desks.
- Crypto Derivatives Trading Cryptocurrency derivatives trading services provided through affiliated entity SDM Financial Inc., a US-based crypto derivatives trading platform. Services are available to non-Canadian residents under strict regulatory oversight.
- Institutional Digital Asset Lending Digital asset lending services for institutional clients, enabling counterparties to access liquidity against crypto collateral to support treasury management and liquidity needs.
- Lightning Network Institutional Settlement Institutional settlement service leveraging Bitcoin Layer 2 (Lightning Network) infrastructure for near-instant, near-zero-fee transfers of large-value Bitcoin payments between regulated counterparties. Powered by Voltage's enterprise Lightning infrastructure.
Quantifiable outcome
- First $1 million Lightning Network payment on record
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Secure Digital Markets
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments8 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Secure Digital Markets technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature3 records
Secure Digital Markets partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- VoltagecoreVoltage provides enterprise-grade Lightning infrastructure with managed nodes and liquidity guarantees for regulated institutions. SDM uses Voltage's infrastructure to process Lightning Network transactions including the first publicly reported $1 million Lightning payment to Kraken. The infrastructure enables near-instant settlement with near-zero fees for institutional treasury operations.
- BitcoinTreasuries.netcoreSDM partnered with BitcoinTreasuries.net as exclusive institutional exchange and Bitcoin market data sponsor. The partnership aims to enhance Bitcoin liquidity access, pricing, and treasury analytics for institutional clients, supporting responsible Bitcoin treasury management and transparency. Collaboration supports corporate and institutional Bitcoin adoption through real-time data and execution infrastructure.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves4 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Secure Digital Markets competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- OSL: OSL is a licensed institutional digital asset platform providing brokerage, custody, and trading services. It competes directly with SDM for institutional and corporate treasury clients, particularly those requiring regulated access.
- Cumberland (DRW): Cumberland is the institutional crypto trading arm of DRW, providing OTC liquidity, derivatives, and lending to institutional counterparties. It is one of the largest institutional liquidity providers and directly overlaps SDM's core trading and lending offerings.
- B2C2: B2C2 is a leading institutional digital asset liquidity provider offering OTC, algorithmic execution, and lending to professional clients. It is a direct competitor to SDM in institutional OTC execution and credit services.
- FalconX: FalconX is a leading institutional digital asset prime broker offering trading, credit, and custody. It competes directly with SDM for institutional clients seeking large-block execution, lending, and derivatives across spot markets.
- Circle Trade: Circle Trade is the institutional OTC trading desk of Circle, providing large-block digital asset execution for institutions. It directly competes with SDM's spot liquidity and RFQ offering for enterprise and treasury clients.
- Wintermute: Wintermute is a global algorithmic trading firm and OTC liquidity provider in digital assets, serving institutional clients including hedge funds, miners, and brokerages. It competes with SDM across OTC execution, market making, and lending.
Broad incumbents
- Kraken: Kraken is a major global cryptocurrency exchange with institutional OTC and trading services. While SDM executed the first $1M Lightning payment with Kraken, Kraken also serves overlapping institutional clients, making it both a partner and a broad competitor.
- Galaxy Digital: Galaxy Digital operates institutional trading, lending, asset management, and mining businesses in digital assets. It overlaps with SDM's spot trading and lending services for institutional clients, and operates at significantly greater scale.
- Coinbase Prime: Coinbase Prime is the institutional prime brokerage arm of Coinbase, offering trading, custody, lending, and financing to institutional clients. It competes with SDM across all three of SDM's product lines but at vastly greater scale and breadth.
Emerging players
- CoinShares: CoinShares is a digital asset investment firm offering trading, lending, and structured products to institutional clients. It overlaps with SDM's institutional trading and lending focus, particularly in European markets.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Secure Digital Markets social profiles
Digital presenceSecure Digital Markets financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Secure Digital Markets leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles4 records
Secure Digital Markets funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Secure Digital Markets M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Secure Digital Markets
What does Secure Digital Markets do?
Secure Digital Markets provides institutional investors with digital asset liquidity through three core services: (1) Spot Trading — large-block and off-exchange transactions across 40+ trading pairs executed via GUI, API, or RFQ; (2) Derivatives — crypto derivatives trading via US affiliate SDM Financial Inc.; and (3) Lending — institutional digital asset lending for treasury and liquidity needs. The firm serves corporate treasuries, principal trading firms, miners, payment processors, hedge funds, family offices, and brokerages/OTC desks.
Is Secure Digital Markets a public or private company?
Secure Digital Markets is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Secure Digital Markets founded?
Secure Digital Markets was founded in 2017. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Secure Digital Markets based?
Secure Digital Markets is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, in the North America region.
How does Secure Digital Markets make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Trading Services are the primary driver. The others are derivatives Trading and digital Asset Lending.
Who are Secure Digital Markets's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are OSL, Cumberland (DRW), B2C2, FalconX, Circle Trade and Wintermute. Broad incumbents are Kraken, Galaxy Digital and Coinbase Prime. CoinShares is listed as an emerging player.
Does Secure Digital Markets have an API?
No public API is recorded for Secure Digital Markets.
What industry is Secure Digital Markets in?
Secure Digital Markets's product category is Institutional Digital Asset Brokerage. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSADAAAC, Institutional Spot Exchanges & Broker-Dealers, with a secondary code of FSAFANAO, Digital Asset/Crypto Trade Execution Platforms. Its NAICS code is 5231 and its SIC code is 6200.