FalconX

FalconX was founded in 2018 by Raghu Yarlagadda and Prabhakar Reddy. Yarlagadda, an engineer and entrepreneur, previously worked at Google, where he was instrumental in scaling Chromebooks to $3 billion in revenue for Google and its partners; Reddy, an engineer and serial entrepreneur, sold his previous venture to an Accel portfolio company and then joined Accel as an investor, focusing on blockchain, B2B, and enterprise software investments. In October 2018, the company was incorporated in Malta to take advantage of the digital assets framework introduced by the Malta Financial Services Authority.⁠[1][1][1][1][1][2]

On May 13, 2020, FalconX announced a $17 million funding round from investors including Accel, Accomplice VC, Coinbase Ventures, Fenbushi Capital, Flybridge Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and Avon Ventures, a fund affiliated with FMR LLC, the parent company of Fidelity Investments; the funds were to be used to introduce new products and expand its trade execution suite and infrastructure.⁠[1][1][1]

At the time, FalconX’s first product had seen more than $7 billion transacted in its first 10 months, growing by word of mouth to more than 100 institutional customers, with nearly $3 billion in volume in the first quarter of 2020. The company trades as a principal, acting as its clients’ sole counterparty, to enable fast execution and guaranteed prices.⁠[1][1][1]

As of December 16, 2020, American Express had invested in FalconX through its venture arm Amex Ventures, in an undisclosed amount.⁠[3][3]

In May 2021, the Malta Financial Services Authority granted FalconX a Class 3 license under the Virtual Financial Assets Act (VFAA), allowing it to operate a regulated virtual financial assets prime brokerage for institutional investors there, including custody, execution of client orders, and dealing on own account; the company had previously operated in Malta under the act’s transitory provisions. Over the preceding year, the company’s net revenue had grown 46-fold, and its volume exceeded $3 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020.⁠[2][2][2][2][2]

On August 10, 2021, FalconX announced a $210 million Series C funding round valuing the company at $3.75 billion; the round was led by Altimeter Capital, Sapphire Ventures, and existing investors B Capital Group and Tiger Global Management, with participation from Mirae Asset, and Amex Ventures increased its investment.⁠[4][4]

At the time, FalconX provided institutions with trading, credit, and clearing across major cryptocurrencies, with its credit business giving institutions access to short-term financing for trades; the company planned to use the new funds to expand its product lines, explore strategic acquisitions, and hire globally, and had offices in Silicon Valley, Chicago, Bengaluru, and Malta.⁠[4][4][4][4]

Since August 15, 2023, FalconX Bravo Inc., owned by FalconX Holdings Limited, has been formally registered with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as a swap dealer, having previously operated with provisional registration for a period; FalconX Bravo is also a member of the National Futures Association.⁠[5][6]

On May 13, 2024, the CFTC issued an order simultaneously filing and settling charges against Falcon Labs, Ltd., organized in the Seychelles. Falcon Labs is wholly owned by FalconX Holdings Limited and, along with several affiliated entities, operates under the name “FalconX.” The CFTC found that from approximately October 2021 through at least March 27, 2023, Falcon Labs, without registering as a futures commission merchant, provided customers including US institutions with access to digital asset derivatives trading by opening main accounts and sub-accounts on exchanges, and that the exchanges generally did not have identifying information for the sub-account holders.⁠[7][5][5][7][7][7]

The order requires Falcon Labs to cease providing US persons with access to digital asset derivatives trading platforms as an unregistered futures commission merchant, and to pay $1,179,008 in disgorgement and a $589,504 civil monetary penalty; the penalty was reduced to reflect its substantial cooperation with the CFTC’s Division of Enforcement. Falcon Labs neither admitted nor denied the findings in the order. The CFTC said this was its first action against an unregistered futures commission merchant that facilitated customer access to digital asset exchanges.⁠[7][7][7][5][7]

On the same day, FalconX announced a strategic partnership with Standard Chartered: in the first phase, Standard Chartered would provide banking services to FalconX globally, and FalconX would integrate its banking infrastructure and access a wide range of currency pairs to improve the speed and scale of cross-border settlement for institutional clients.⁠[8][8][8]

On January 2, 2025, FalconX announced the acquisition of the crypto derivatives trading firm Arbelos Markets. Founded in 2023 and led by Joshua Lim, Shiliang Tang, and Sergio Almada Monter, Arbelos provides around-the-clock liquidity across centralized markets and on-chain protocols, along with bespoke hedging and yield solutions. Yarlagadda said that with over 60% of derivatives trading in traditional markets taking place OTC, the acquisition would solidify FalconX’s position in derivatives liquidity.⁠[9][9][9][9]

On June 2, 2025, the multi-strategy digital asset investment firm Monarq Asset Management (formerly MNNC Group) announced a strategic investment from FalconX; FalconX later stated that the investment was a majority stake in Monarq, made to serve clients seeking actively managed digital asset strategies and to diversify its business.⁠[10][11]

On July 29, 2025, FalconX announced the expansion of its execution and prime brokerage platform into Latin America, working with local financial institutions including BTG Pactual and Mercado Bitcoin; the company had previously expanded across APAC and EMEA.⁠[12][12][12][12]

On October 22, 2025, FalconX announced that it had agreed to acquire 21shares, an issuer of crypto exchange-traded funds and products (ETFs/ETPs), its third strategic transaction of the year. Founded in 2018 by Hany Rashwan and Ophelia Snyder, 21shares managed over $11 billion in assets across 55 listed products as of September 30, 2025. At the time, FalconX had facilitated over $2 trillion in trading volume and had more than 2,000 institutional clients. The two sides agreed that after completion, 21shares would remain independently managed under FalconX, with Russell Barlow continuing as CEO and no changes to the construction or investment objectives of existing products.⁠[13][13][13][13][13][13]

On November 20, 2025, FalconX announced the completion of its acquisition of 21shares.⁠[11]

On June 29, 2026, FalconX announced that its subsidiary FalconX Limited had received authorization from the Malta Financial Services Authority under the EU’s Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), allowing it to provide trading, custody, and liquidity services to institutional clients across the European Economic Area. At the time, the company served more than 2,000 institutional clients globally and, since inception, had facilitated over $2.5 trillion in trading volume and originated more than $8 billion in institutional financing.⁠[14][14][14][14]

On July 15, 2026, FalconX announced the acquisition of the blockchain trading and networking technology company bloXroute to support tokenized assets and on-chain capital markets; terms were not disclosed. Founded in 2017, bloXroute provides networks for receiving blockchain data and submitting transactions to market makers, trading firms, validators, and exchanges. In the same year, FalconX expanded its client-facing trading business to oil, gold, silver, compute, and tokenized equities.⁠[15][15][15][15][15][15]

On August 19, 2026, FalconX announced a $1 billion secured lending facility through a special purpose vehicle set up with Ethena, deploying assets backing USDe into overcollateralized institutional credit; FalconX acts as originator, servicer, and collateral manager for the loans, with collateral held at qualified custodians.⁠[16][16]

As of October 2026, FalconX provided institutions with 24/7 digital asset liquidity and capital services, spanning trading, financing, custody, direct market access, ETF solutions, and electronic options, with clients including asset managers, hedge funds, family offices, miners, banks, and corporate treasuries; since inception, the company had facilitated over $2.5 trillion in trading volume, and it had more than 350 employees globally.⁠[17][17][17][17]

Raghu Yarlagadda is CEO and has led the company to a valuation exceeding $8 billion. The company has offices in Silicon Valley, New York, London, Hong Kong, Bengaluru, Singapore, and Valletta, and its investors include Accel, Adams Street Partners, Altimeter Capital, American Express Ventures, B Capital, GIC, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Sapphire Ventures, Thoma Bravo, Tiger Global Management, and Wellington Management; Tiger Global once led a $50 million FalconX round at a valuation of about $675 million.⁠[17][18][15][15][19][19]

FalconX: Official website: https://www.falconx.io/ (opens in a new window).⁠[20]

X: Public account: https://x.com/FalconXGlobal (opens in a new window)⁠[20]

LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: Public profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/thefalconx/ (opens in a new window)⁠[20]