Former Revolut Employees Launch X10 Exchange to Fill Market Gap Left by FTX, Securing $6.5M in Funding

Former Revolut employees have launched a new crypto exchange called X10, raising $6.5 million in its first funding round. 

The platform aims to address a void in the market that was once occupied by FTX, the exchange founded by Sam Bankman-Fried, who is currently in prison, according to a report from Sifted. 

Tioga Capital led the funding round, with participation from Semantic Ventures, Cherry Ventures, Starkware, and Cyber Fund. 

X10 was founded by Ruslan Fakhrutdinov, the former head of crypto operations at Revolut, Dmitrii Krasovskikh, the ex-technical lead, and Stefano Franz, the former lead crypto engineer.

Unlike Revolut, X10 is a “Selfcustodial” Crypto Exchange

X10 distinguishes itself as a “selfcustodial” crypto exchange, straddling the line between centralized and decentralized systems. 

While the early days of Bitcoin emphasized decentralization, the crypto industry has witnessed the rise of centralized platforms like Coinbase, Kraken, and Binance. 

These platforms offer convenience and ease of use, but they require users to entrust their funds to a central authority.

Decentralized exchanges, such as UniSwap, offer users the ability to trade without relying on a central authority, providing enhanced security and control over assets. 

X10 aims to combine the best aspects of both models by allowing users to hold their cryptocurrency in their own wallets while executing trades through a centralized system for a smoother user experience.

“How can we effectively make sure that this won’t happen again?” he says he asked himself. 

“To be honest, the answer was always in the blockchain technology itself…one of the purposes of blockchain is to allow for selfcustody — let’s call it financial freedom.” 

The vision behind X10 is to provide financial freedom and ensure transparency and honesty in trading while maintaining user-friendly interfaces.

X10’s trading infrastructure predominantly operates on centralized servers, but traders are required to log in with their crypto wallets, and all trades occur directly on the blockchain. 

The exchange targets professional investors, akin to FTX’s “built by traders, for traders” approach. However, Fakhrutdinov suggests that X10 may expand its scope in the future.

X10’s Launch Comes Amid Market Recovery

The timing of X10’s launch aligns with the resurgence of the crypto market. 

Fakhrutdinov acknowledges the favorable market conditions and expresses gratitude for launching during a bullish period. 

The funding secured will be utilized to further develop the crypto trading platform, including the creation of a mobile app.

The recent approval of eleven Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has brought further optimism to the industry. 

Centralized cryptocurrency exchanges (CEXs) like Binance experienced a large surge in trading volumes between October 2023 and March 2024, according to Bybit’s 2024 Institutional Industry Report released on April 18.

Notably, OKX saw a 278% increase in 30-day volumes since October, followed closely by Binance, which saw a 239% surge. 

Bybit exchange also demonstrated impressive growth, adding 264% to its trading volumes during the same period.

These exchanges have outpaced the industry’s average growth rate of 255%, as confirmed by a spokesperson for Bybit. 

The U.S.-based exchange Coinbase also witnessed growth, albeit slightly trailing behind with a 193% increase in trading volume.