Wintermute registers as SEC broker-dealer to pursue ETF roles

Wintermute USA registered as a broker-dealer with the Securities and Exchange Commission and became a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority on Aug. 6. The registration allows the firm to trade equities and equity options for its own account, serve as an authorized participant for digital-asset exchange-traded products and self-clear digital-asset securities transactions for its own account. The approval does not permit customer brokerage or custody services, and Wintermute has not named any ETF issuer that has appointed it as an authorized participant nor disclosed participation in the Depository Trust Company or any distributor agreements.

Wintermute operates as a global crypto market maker that reports more than $10 billion in average daily trading volume and supplies liquidity across more than 60 centralized and decentralized trading venues. The group’s international arm supports liquidity for regulated products such as Fidelity’s Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund. Market-making and authorized-participant roles for crypto ETPs are currently performed by several established trading firms.

Wintermute has also taken part in tokenized securities activity on decentralized platforms. The firm was among whitelisted market participants providing competitive quotes for swaps involving BlackRock’s BUIDL tokenized money-market fund on UniswapX, which enabled eligible investors to exchange BUIDL for USDC.

In July 2025 the SEC approved in-kind creations and redemptions for Bitcoin and Ethereum exchange-traded products, allowing authorized participants to deliver or receive the underlying crypto assets rather than relying solely on cash. That change expanded the types of infrastructure that connect traditional securities markets and digital-asset systems.

Even with broker-dealer registration and FINRA membership, firms seeking to act as authorized participants typically must join the Depository Trust Company and execute fund-specific and distributor agreements before performing creation and redemption activity for U.S. funds. Wintermute has not publicly confirmed such agreements.

Evgeny Gaevoy, founder and chief executive, wrote in a statement: “Digital assets and traditional finance will continue to develop in parallel, intersect in new ways, and ultimately integrate more deeply. As the landscape evolves, the firms that succeed will be those that have technical and operational know-how to operate in both.”

Industry participants say an issuer naming Wintermute as an authorized participant would provide the clearest evidence that the firm is entering the U.S. ETF creation and redemption ecosystem. For now, the SEC registration gives Wintermute a regulated pathway to compete for authorized-participant roles while it continues to operate its existing crypto liquidity business.