Architect fintech receives NFA approval to operate as introducing broker

The former president of FTX US founded the company in January to serve institutional investors in crypto and traditional derivatives.

Architect Financial Technologies, the startup founded by former FTX US president Brett Harrison, will provide derivatives brokerage services following its Architect Financial Derivatives subsidiary receiving approval from the National Futures Association (NFA) to operate as an independent introducing broker. The company is eyeing both the cryptocurrency derivatives market and the traditional market, Harrison said.

An introducing broker is an NFA member that “solicits or accepts orders to buy or sell futures contracts, commodity options, retail off-exchange forex contracts, or swaps” but does not receive money from customers for doing it. Architect is a software provider.

Harrison told Bloomberg Markets the main focus for the company is to:

“Build out regulated businesses in the exchange-traded derivatives spaces, not just for crypto derivatives but for derivatives at large.”

According to a statement, the Architect trading platform will offer trading in a range of derivatives on exchanges regulated by the United States Commodity Futures Trading Commission with clearing services through regulated partners. It will also offer access to over 20 regulated exchanges internationally to qualified customers.

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Harrison started Architect in January with $5 million from investors that included Coinbase Ventures and Circle Ventures, among others. It was created with the intention of providing trading software for institutional investors.

Harrison was the president of FTX US from May 2021 to September 2022, resigning before the cryptocurrency exchange went bankrupt along with other FTX-linked companies in November of that year. Harrison documented his relationship with former FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried in a massive Twitter (now X) thread in January.

Unified, configurable, multi-exchange options trading on @Architect_xyz pic.twitter.com/cgd8JfaFow

— Brett Harrison (@BrettHarrison88) September 1, 2023

Under Harrison’s leadership, Chicago-based FTX US completed a $400-million funding round and announced plans to open a stock trading platform. Like Bankman-Fried and other former FTX executives, Harrison began his career at Jane Street Capital.

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