Wintermute’s OTC Trading Volume Surges 400% in 2023

In the latter half of 2023, the over-the-counter (OTC) trading volume of market maker Wintermute increased by 400% compared to the first six months.

1/ ?First, an exclusive dive into Wintermute’s OTC stats. Despite slower markets, ’23 marked significant growth:

▪️ OTC volumes grew 4x in H2 ‘23
▪️ Record $2Bn+ weekly trading volume
▪️ No. of counterparties increased 98% YoY
▪️ 206 unique assets & 495 pairs traded in H2 ‘23 pic.twitter.com/gS50sI9jqK

— Wintermute (@wintermute_t) January 9, 2024

Amid this growth, the firm recorded a 13% period-over-period decline in exchange segment trading.

The company noted that despite market stagnation, Wintermute achieved several successes:

• record weekly trading volume exceeded $2 billion;
• the number of counterparties increased by 98% year-on-year;
• the number of supported assets reached 206, with 495 trading pairs.

CEO Evgeny Gaevoy highlighted that market slowdown and liquidity depletion led traders to shift their interest to the OTC segment. He identified new derivative offerings and demand for such products as key growth factors for Wintermute in the second half of the year.

Among other trends, the firm noted an increase in the share of payment tokens in trading volumes. This was driven by XRP following the partial settlement of the legal dispute between the SEC and Ripple. In the second half, meme coins also increased their share amid a boom.

Another notable trend was the shift in interest from “blue chips” like Bitcoin and Ethereum to other assets.

Additionally, in trading volumes, representatives of traditional finance slightly edged out “native” cryptocurrency players, who nonetheless continue to dominate.

Back in 2022, the market maker lost $160 million in assets due to a hacker attack.