Ex-Revolut exec raises $6.5 million for hybrid crypto exchange X10

X10, a hybrid crypto exchange utilizing the StarkEx Layer 2 engine, launched out of stealth today on testnet with $6.5 million in funding.

Investors in the platform include Tioga Capital, Semantic Ventures, Cherry Ventures, StarkWare and Cyber Fund, as well as angel investors such as Revolut executives and Lido co-founder Konstantin Lomashuk, according to a statement.

The platform is designed to combine the speed, execution and portfolio features of a centralized exchange with self-custody and on-chain settlement associated with decentralized exchanges to improve latency, throughput and liquidity, the team said. X10 avoids the transparency and security flaws of centralized exchanges and the risk of lost funds in cases like the collapse of FTX, the team claimed.

X10 was founded by former Revolut employees with experience developing financial products for millions of users and is led by the fintech firm’s former Head of Crypto Ops Ruslan Fakhrutdinov.

"With X10, we want to give our users and traders the best of both worlds. Imagine the features and the speed of Coinbase or Binance but with full self-custody,” X10 CEO Fakhrutdinov said. “The FTX situation serves as a wake-up call for the industry. It urges us to reinforce trust and efficiency in crypto trading through on-chain trade settlement, validation and self-custody.”

How X10 works

X10 operates as a hybrid central limit order book exchange with order processing, matching, position risk assessment and transaction sequencing handled off-chain. The improved latency and throughput benefits market makers, leading to narrower spreads, deeper liquidity and up-to-date prices, the team said.

Trade settlement is managed on-chain using the StarkEx Layer 2 engine. Additionally, the system uses independent oracle price providers to source market prices and help safeguard against price manipulation, ensuring asset values are accurately represented.

It’s not the first time former Revolut employees have raised funds in the space, with Ayelen Denovitzer and Shailendra Sason securing $3.5 million in 2022 to build a crypto investment app.