Brett Harrison Launches AX Perpetual Futures Platform
Former FTX US president Brett Harrison has launched AX, a new perpetual futures platform for traditional assets. Approved by the Bermuda Monetary Authority, AX offers 24/7 trading of perpetual futures on stocks, commodities, energy, metals, indices, currencies and interest rates. The exchange accepts both fiat and USD stablecoins as collateral, mirroring the market structure of crypto derivatives. Architect Financial Technologies is raising a $17 million Series A round backed by Coinbase Ventures, Circle Ventures and the SALT Fund. Future expansions include perpetual futures on AI economy assets such as rare earth minerals, renewable energy and data-centre compute costs. By bridging perpetual futures mechanisms from crypto with conventional markets, AX aims to enhance trading capacity, accessibility and institutional participation.
Bullish
AX’s launch of perpetual futures for traditional assets and 24/7 USD stablecoin margining is likely to boost demand for stablecoins and derivative trading volume. In the short term, traders will allocate fiat and stablecoins as collateral, increasing stablecoin usage. In the long term, regulatory approval and institutional backing may drive broader adoption of crypto-style derivatives in conventional markets, enhancing liquidity and market depth. This trend supports a bullish outlook for stablecoins and the derivative ecosystem.