Crypto Platform Matrixport Hires Big-name Coinbase Exec To Build US Business

Blockworks exclusive: Anthony DeMartino, former head of risk strategies at Coinbase, has joined Matrixport, the company confirmed today

article-image

ANTHONY DEMARTINO, MATRIXPORT | SOURCE: ANTHONY DEMARTINO / LINKEDIN

share
  • The splashy appointment comes as a number of crypto companies are cutting staff in an effort to maintain their margins in a turbulent market
  • One source dubbed his departure a “big blow” for Coinbase

Matrixport has landed a prized former Coinbase executive to lead the cryptocurrency investment platform’s US business, according to two sources familiar with the matter. 

Anthony DeMartino, a Wall Street veteran, was most recently head of risk strategies, institutional decentralized finance and derivatives trading at Coinbase. The lengthy title, one source who has done business with the exchange said, indicates DeMartino’s departure deals a “big blow.”

Matrixport representatives confirmed the hire. A Coinbase spokesperson did not respond to multiple requests for comment. DeMartino declined to comment.

Cynthia Wu, Matrixport’s chief operating officer, told Blockworks that company executives are convinced DeMartino’s “experience, passion and style fits Matrixport very well.”

Having previously spent time at traditional finance institutions — including managing director-level positions overseeing aspects of emerging-market trading for Barclays and HSBC — DeMartino is known by industry participants to keep strict tabs on a deep rolodex of Wall Street contacts. 

That, sources said, was especially important to Coinbase’s yearslong push to develop something similar to a traditional prime brokerage — including lending, trading and clearing, as well as capital introduction. Though exchanges and other crypto financial firms have worked to develop such an all-in-one, plug-and-play product, most traders say it’s still a pipe dream, leading to a hodgepodge of different service providers based in different time zones investing in different corners of crypto markets.

Coinbase recently announced steep layoffs in response to a market downturn that has eroded once-lucrative trading fees. Although exchanges have tried for years to diversify their revenue streams to reduce reliance on such fees, results have been mixed. 

Matrixport, meanwhile, appears to still be on the hiring trail — an outlier in a crypto landscape where most layoffs are measured as better or worse than expected, but expected, nonetheless.

Tags

Decoding crypto and the markets. Daily, with Byron Gilliam.

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 24 - 26, 2026

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

Unlocked by Template.png

Research

The march toward an interoperable and onchain-by-default internet depends on reliable messaging and value transfer across heterogeneous domains. Crosschain protocols now process >$1.3T in combined annual transfer volume and secure tens of millions of user interactions, yet no single design dominates.

article-image

The goal, per Santiago Santos, is to make crypto a relatable piece of tech for people who may not even understand it

article-image

Stripe stablecoin unit aims to operate under a federal charter enabling regulated stablecoin issuance and custody services

by Blockworks /
article-image

Will TradFi make crypto better or create more problems than it solves?

article-image

Subtle decisions by risk curators saved Aave from significant turmoil

article-image

The new Rootstock Institutional unit aims to connect professional investors to Bitcoin-native yield and liquidity strategies anchored in BTC’s security layer

by Blockworks /
article-image

DOJ files record civil forfeiture against more than 127,000 BTC linked to scam activity

by Blockworks /