Brett Harrison raises $5 million for DeFi company aimed at institutions: Bloomberg

Former FTX.US president Brett Harrison has raised $5 million from investors including Coinbase Ventures and Circle Ventures to build out his latest venture: Architect.

The new firm—which Harrison has been developing in stealth since he left FTX in September—will provide software trading tools in the decentralized finance space for large investors and institutions, according to Bloomberg News.

Other investors in the round include Anthony Scaramucci, who previously invested in Harrison’s former employer, FTX. SV Angel, Third King Venture Capital and Motivate Venture Capital are also backers of the new firm.

Previously head of semi-systematic technology at Citadel Securities, Harrison was tapped to lead FTX’s American off shoot in 2019. He has recently distanced himself from disgraced former billionaire and FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried for his stewardship of the now bankrupt firm.

«There was tremendous pressure not to disagree with Sam, but I did so anyway,» Harrison said in a tweet on Jan. 14, referring to his disagreements with Bankman-Fried. «At that time, and for all of my time at FTX US, his influence over the media, FTX’s partners, the venture capital industry, and the traditional finance industry was pervasive and unyielding.»

Disclaimer: Beginning in 2021, Michael McCaffrey, the former CEO and majority owner of The Block, took a series of loans from founder and former FTX and Alameda CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. McCaffrey resigned from the company in December 2022 after failing to disclose those transactions.

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