Category: Company

“FTX never passed Young Platform’s due diligence checks and we have never had any dependence on FTX. AUM are safe,” guarantees Italy’s largest exchange

The crisis affecting the FTX exchange was triggered by revelations concerning the balance sheet of Alameda, a company founded by CEO Sam Bankman-Fried

Turin, the 10th of November 2022 – The liquidity crisis that hit the FTX exchange, one of the largest in the world, has caused an earthquake in the cryptocurrency sector. However, it is one of a different nature than the collapse of LUNA at the beginning of the year. It is related to the particular condition of the companies FTX and Alameda Research.

The management model represented by Young Platform, Italy’s leading exchange community, differs markedly from what emerged from press reports concerning FTX and Alameda. This can be traced back to the managerial activities of Sam Bankman-Fried, founder and CEO of FTX as well as founder of Alameda. The latter company was dedicated to hedge fund and trading activities, and was also previously administered by Sam Bankman-Fried.

“FTX never passed Young Platform’s due diligence checks and we never had any dependence on FTX, so our clients’ Assets under management are safe. Moreover, the FTT token was not even listed on our platform, which means that no Young Platform client has lost money in connection with the FTX affair,” assures Mariano Carozzi, president of the Italian cryptocurrency trading platform, which has over one and a half million members.

FTX and Alameda Research were not as separate as advertised, according to news site CoinDesk, who had learned about Alameda’s balance sheet, causing solvency doubts to arise. This revealed that Alameda’s main asset was the FTX exchange’s token FTT, worth about $3.86 billion out of $14.6 billion in total assets.

Not only that, but the third largest asset was USD 2.16 billion of ‘FTT collateral’. This is therefore a huge component of the balance sheet, but what matters more is the quality of the asset. Not only did half of the balance sheet come from their own centralised entity, but it was linked to an illiquid token whose intrinsic value is almost impossible to calculate. Moreover, in the last period, the exchange had been active in acquiring companies in crisis. So, the balance sheet shows the consequences of these purchases, which may have been economically advantageous but financially very demanding.

“Young’s economic situation is very different, we have recently strengthened our capital endowment with a significant capital increase underwritten by leading Italian institutions, the working group and our business organisation. Moreover, we have never been attracted by financial transactions that, even if advantageous, were nevertheless risky”. This was highlighted by Andrea Ferrero, CEO of Young Platform, referring to the financing round led by Azimut in June and in which a pool of investors participated, including Banca Sella and United Ventures.

Young Platform represents a principled model for managing cryptocurrencies in a secure manner that is beneficial to customers and the company itself. The platform’s goal is to provide access to state-of-the-art crypto products while maintaining a conservative approach to business operations, security and financial resilience. This approach is also embodied in our choice of excellent partners, even at this difficult time for the market, such as our industry-leading custody service Fireblocks.”“Bitcoin is experiencing a moment of high volatility in the short term, but as an asset it does not change its intrinsic value and this makes us confident, despite everything,‘ Carozzi concludes. ‘In addition to the turbulence and inflation of the period, our industry has to deal with regulatory and normative uncertainties that still need to be remedied by institutions, in order to reward quality operators. The great virtue of cryptocurrencies so far has been their ability to learn from their mistakes and strengthen themselves accordingly. We believe that the best players will be rewarded in any regulatory and market environment’.

A partnership has been secured between the world’s leading provider of Web3 domains, Unstoppable Domains, and Italy’s leading cryptocurrency exchange, Young Platform.

Turin, the 2nd of November 2022 – Young Platform, Italy’s leading cryptocurrency exchange, has signed a partnership with Unstoppable Domains, the world’s leading provider of Web3 domains. The partnership will allow more than 1.5 million people in Italy, present within the Young Platform ecosystem, to educate themselves on the Web3 world and to receive a free credit to purchase a Web3 domain.

The partnership was signed by Andrea Ferrero, Co-Founder and CEO of Young Platform and Sandy Carter, SVP and Channel Chief of Unstoppable Domains. Young Platform is a scale-up founded in Turin in 2018, which today has names such as Azimut, United Ventures and Banca Sella among its investors. 

This is a blockchain-based collaboration, bringing NFTs and cryptocurrencies together. Founded in San Francisco, California, Unstoppable Domains allows people to create Web3 domains that can become a fundamental part of their digital identity. A Web3 domain, in its simplest form, is a name (example: alicesmith.nft) that exists as an NFT on the blockchain. This allows the owner of the domain to have all associated data under their direct control. They are also able to use it as a digital identity across hundreds of web3 Dapps, wallets and exchanges. These use cases can be summarised in one fundamental concept: data sovereignty. Data sovereignty means that only the owner has the right to decide who or what can access their data, what data they want to share with which apps as well as how it is used.

In Web2, it is difficult, if not impossible, to move data from one app to another because big technology companies create closed ecosystems. For example, we can publish the same content on all Meta services or use the same account for all Amazon services, but using the same content or credentials on both is impossible.

By contrast, the definition of Web3 is based on content sovereignty: there are no companies asking for data in exchange for services. Instead, developers create services, and users use and pay for them without relinquishing control of their data. All this is possible thanks to blockchain technology, which makes the ownership of all kinds of tokens immutable and secure with cryptography. Smart contracts are crucial for this too, as they make it possible to build decentralised applications (DApps).

Young Platform is positioned as the Italian entry point for the cryptocurrency market, and it now has over 1.5 million registered users. Young’s proprietary token (YNG), based on Ethereum, was first distributed free of charge only through educational features (such as the Step app), and then introduced to the market in June 2022. In the same month, Young Platform closed a EUR 16 million investment round led by Azimut. The ‘cryptocompany’ aims to create a team of 110 employees by the end of the year.  Having taken its first steps in the i3P incubator of the Politecnico di Torino, today, Young Platform aims to become a smart digital bank, natively focused on digital services with solid foundations based on regulatory compliance and dialogue with regulators. The company retains a mix of talent and experience, thanks to an advisory board of professionals from high finance and the tech world, as well as the ability to aggregate an aware and resilient community.

“Unstoppable is giving the power of the Internet back to the people. We’re excited to partner with Young Platform to expand access to Web3 through strong crypto education and access to Web3 domains,” says Sandy Carter, SVP and Channel Chief of Unstoppable Domains.

“This powerful integration is just one step in an exciting journey to facilitate Web3 adoption. We are excited to partner with Unstoppable Domains, and are confident that this implementation is just one of many more exciting collaborations to come,” says Andrea Ferrero. “Unstoppable Domains is doing an amazing job of paving the way for a decentralised identity. Suffice it to say that your Unstoppable Web3 domain is your wallet address, your decentralised web access and your universal username, all at the same time. Web3 was introduced in our educational paths and integrated in our products. Thanks to this effort, it’s now accessible to everyone, also in Italy.” 

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Young Platform looks beyond the current market trend and continues with its recruitment plan. We’re here to explain why this is not a crazy move

The days at Young Platform move quickly. So too does the world of crypto. With everything moving at the speed of light, we try to keep up and make this universe accessible to everyone. It all starts with our colleagues in front of the coffee machine. We all work in crypto, but we specialise in many different areas. The Trading room shares crypto memes with the Social network team and the Developers listen to behind-the-scenes gossip coming from Customer Support. In this environment, we also see our wallets slipping more and more into the red. With a pat on the back, we say to newcomers: “first time?”. Your first bear market, just like your first Bitcoin, will never be forgotten.

The economic conditions in recent months have changed rapidly. The crisis in the crypto market (and beyond) is leading many companies in the sector to cut their recruitment. For some, the answer to this crisis is to cut labour costs through layoffs, and some may even regret having hired too much when the market was growing.  But at Young Platform, our hiring plan is tight and we intend to stick to it. It is not a reckless choice, and we are here to explain why. By the end of 2022, 52 more colleagues will have joined and maybe a single coffee machine will no longer be enough.

Bear markets pass but Young Platform’s mission remains

At Young Platform there are many open positions, a bear market (however long it lasts) will not stop our growth. We have decided to switch the perspective by taking advantage of this delicate moment to think outside the hype that overwhelms us when the market is going strong. We can ask ourselves with a clear mind: How are we working? Why do we do what we do? Young Platform’s mission will always remain the same: to facilitate the use and understanding of crypto and blockchain technology. We know what these tools can do for the world as we know it. We know that they can improve people’s lives. That is why in the face of it all, we have to keep building, and even in current conditions, the team needs to expand.

An example of this spirit is the listing of our token. YNG was launched on the market even when the market itself was not the most welcoming. Is that a bold move? No, the same reasoning also applies here: bear and bull markets will succeed each other, but the values behind Young Platform and its community will remain unchanged.

The invaluable value of the Young Platform team

When you join Young Platform you’ll have a lot to learn. You don’t have to be a great expert to start, but crypto education is a necessary tool and it has become our bread and butter. When you join Young Platform, you are aware that the industry is evolving and you cannot stand still. That’s why the talent Young Platform gathers comprises some of the most curious and active minds around. The Young Platform team is always ready to take cues from the swirling crypto world and to get involved at the most challenging of times. Working in crypto is not a job like any other, and it’s our mission that guides us through the difficulties. The inestimable value of Young Platform’s team lies in confrontation that leads to growth. Between the corridors of our office and our video calls that connect colleagues all over the world, peer-to-peer education is key. There is no such thing as crypto education.

The capital increase and our recruitment plan

On the 13th of June 2022 Young Platform closed a €16 million investment round led by Azimut, one of Europe’s leading independent asset managers. Banca Sella and United Ventures also participated in the round. This support for Young Platform’s growth will be visible in its recruitment plan. The forecast is to have a team of 110 crypto workers by the end of 2022.

You can view our open positions.

Young Platform is among the first Italian companies in the crypto industry registered with the Organismo Agenti e Mediatori

With the 13th of January, 2022 decree of the Italian Ministry of Economy and Finance, a requirement was issued for companies operating in the cryptocurrency sector in Italy to register with the Organismo Agenti e Mediatori (OAM) and provide quarterly reports. The registry for virtual currency operators was made public on the 27th of May, 2022, and Young Platform is the first officially registered company out of 14 on this date, as indicated by the registration number “PSV1.” Another 28 companies have pre-registered. 

What is the Organismo Agenti e Mediatori?

The OAM is the body that brings together professionals in the field of financial activities and credit brokers operating in Italy. The mission of the OAM is to protect consumers by guaranteeing the professionalism of companies and overseeing that their work complies with current regulations. The Organismo Agenti e Mediatori collects reports of information and data from professionals and companies. Specifically, for virtual currency operators, it will collect quarterly data on operations carried out in the territory of the Italian Republic. 

Why is registration with the OAM important?

Being registered with the registry for virtual currency operators is a prerequisite for legally providing crypto services in Italy. In fact, the exercise of services on Italian territory related to the use of cryptocurrencies and the provision of digital wallets (wallets) is reserved exclusively for registered entities. With its registration with the OAM, Young Platform is in line with the legislative decree and will be subjected in full transparency to the necessary controls to ensure a positive experience for users.  

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The fintech company Young Platform closes a €16m investment round led by Azimut to simplify and expand the access to the world of cryptocurrencies

Milan, 13 June 2022 – Azimut, one of the leading independent asset managers in Europe with over EUR 83 billion total assets, participated as lead investor in the EUR 16 million capital increase of Young Platform, an Italian fintech platform that simplifies the access to the world of cryptocurrencies.

Among Italy’s leading fintech scale-ups, Young Platform aims to simplify the access to the world of cryptocurrencies through a digital product platform and intensive educational and popularization activities on blockchain technology and its applications. Among the top three cryptocurrency trading platforms in Italy with 36% market share, the company had over 1 million users at the end of the first quarter of 2022, equal to 11 times the previous year’s volumes. It aims to become a smart digital bank with a focus on new digital services. 

Azimut’s EUR 11 million investment was made through a consortium formed by the Digital Asset Opportunity Fund VCC, launched in collaboration with SBI and SYGNUM, the Azimut Digitech Fund created through a partnership with GELLIFY, and the Luxembourg-based vehicle Azimut Direct Investment Young Platform SCSp. This allowed the Group’s High Net Worth (HNW) customers, served by the network of financial advisors and wealth managers in Italy, to gain exposure to a constantly growing sector.

A pool of investors including Banca Sella, United Ventures and Abalone Venture also participated in the Azimut-led round to support the international expansion of Young Platform.

The cryptocurrency market almost tripled its capitalization in 2021, from $772 billion on the 1st of January to $2.19 trillion on the 31st of December (CoinMarketCap data) and is entering a new phase of development with growing interest from retail investors, as well as institutional investors. In particular, young Italians are among the most enthusiastic in Europe with 14% between the ages of 18 and 34 stating that they have bought or sold cryptocurrencies. Globally, more than a third of millennials believe cryptocurrencies will soon replace cash and cards (Deutsche Bank data).

The new capital investment will support Young Platform’s development plans, starting with the expansion of the team, from 41 to 110 members by the end of 2022, and geographic expansion into new markets such as Spain and France. 

Giorgio Medda, Chief Executive Officer and Global Head of Asset management & Fintech at Azimut Group, comments: “Despite the volatility, cryptocurrencies are emerging as a new asset class reflecting a new digital dimension of the economy that will be increasingly significant for generations Y and Z. Young Platform has developed crypto exchange capabilities in combination with gaming and educational verticals that are particularly valuable as we plan to grow a market segment for a new generation of investors who are looking to the future with financial perspectives based on non-traditional instruments. The Young Platform team uniquely combines technological capability and vision. From our perspective as global venture capital investors, with the experience of SBI and the support of GELLIFY, we believe there is great potential for its development in the European markets. This investment aims to be the cornerstone for the development of joint projects through which we can integrate blockchain and decentralized finance into our asset management platform as new investment and operational opportunities in the digital transformation of our industry, transcending market dynamics in the short term.”

Andrea Ferrero, CEO of Young Platform, comments: “We want to help people seize the new opportunities that technology offers to the world by attracting the best talent from technology and finance, or any other industry where the smartest people in the world are to be found, and grooming them to be innovative in this new industry. There are no defined rules in this industry, which means we can help write them. This is a huge chance that requires extremely creative problem solving and a true desire to change the status quo in every aspect, from marketing to tech to customer support and design.”

The acquisition will allow Young Platform to develop new and innovative proprietary trading algorithms, fully automatic and built ad-hoc for the crypto markets

Arithmos Trading Ltd has distinguished itself through its achievements, with dozens of certified track records and its methodology for designing new automated strategies

The operation will result in an Italian company bringing back talent and advanced technologies in the crypto world that had previously ended up abroad

Turin, 13 January 2021 – Young Platform S.p.A., the platform that simplifies access to the world of cryptocurrencies, has announced the acquisition of Arithmos Trading Ltd, a company specialising in the development of fully automated trading systems. An automated trading system processes multiple sources of information at a very high speed in order to maximise profit while minimising risk and human intervention.

Arithmos Trading Ltd’s algorithms have been proven, with certified track records and objective results, to address the changing and unique needs of the crypto markets. Through this operation, Young Platform intends to consolidate its position as a leading Italian crypto exchange, capable of bringing new and exclusive features to its users in the future.

Through the acqui-hiring operation, the intellectual property of Arithmos and its team will be integrated into Young Platform’s staff, thus allowing an Italian company to bring back advanced technologies and competencies in the crypto world that had previously ended up abroad.

Arithmos Trading Ltd was established in London in 2020 after years of research and development by its two founders, Edoardo Degli Innocenti and Matteo Meinardi, both engineers with MBAs from the Collège des Ingénieurs. In a short time, Arithmos has managed to invent a proprietary methodology capable of building robust algorithmic trading systems capable of automatically trading in more than 20 different markets simultaneously.

The great flexibility and originality of the strategies of the London-based firm, which has developed three different families of trading systems capable of generating net profits of over 70% per year, will allow Young Platform to enable a set of new exclusive features for platform users in the future, based on the most modern techniques of strategy design and artificial intelligence, thus gaining a further concrete competitive advantage in the market.

The operation is strategic in the overall industry landscape, which has seen major international financial market players introduce innovative algorithmic trading products during the pandemic to ensure better services and help clients navigate the increasingly complex and volatile market dynamics.

Edoardo Degli Innocenti and Matteo Meinardi, founders of Arithmos Trading Ltd, commented: “We are proud to have achieved such ambitious results in just two years, thanks to a focus on the development of innovative and effectively integrated products, from which we expect considerable synergistic contributions to accelerate the growth of Young Platform into an industry leader.”

Andrea Ferrero and Mariano Carozzi, CEO and Chairman of Young Platform, commented: “We believe that artificial intelligence applied to trading will play a significant role in Young Platform’s future. The solutions developed by the Arithmos team are the highest in terms of reliability and performance. We are excited about Young Platform’s upcoming future, and with this team on board, we hope to further accelerate our development at an international level as well. “

Turin, 28th June 2021. A few months after Young’s third birthday, we want to celebrate with you a new stage in our history. We have closed a new €3.5 million capital increase with United Ventures, one of the Italian leading venture capital funds in Italy specialising in investments in digital technologies.

This Top League round represents an important confirmation for Young Platform, which will allow us to consolidate our leadership in Italy and lay the foundations for an international expansion.

Founded to bring transparency, inclusion and education to the world of personal finance and digital assets, Young Platform will continue to develop new services related to cryptocurrencies and decentralised finance, while maintaining our community-driven identity, and focus on user education through user-friendly products. 

Young Platform is first and foremost a community, a group of enthusiasts and professionals who share valuable know-how. This sharing principle has resulted in our products becoming educational tools for people who want to enter the crypto market but don’t know where to start, as they can access the knowledge base to do so in an informed manner. 

We believe that education and awareness are the best ways to get started, that’s why our educational content is available for free to all levels of experience, with 24/7 support.

The company, the team, and our community of nearly 300,000 cryptocurrency traders and enthusiasts could not have found a better partner than United Ventures’ team.

United Ventures’ mission is to identify and promote disruptive innovations in the Italian technology industry and turn them into international businesses. However, what has certainly driven our union is the sharing of common values – first and foremost, the belief in always putting people first.

Their investment portfolio already includes the likes of MusiXmatch, Moneyfarm and Faceit. It is therefore an honour to join this team and bring our community with us.

 

To the moon!

Team Young

Read the article on Tech.eu and EU-Startups

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Join the Dynamo Camp’s fundraising campaign by donating cryptocurrency through Young Platform’s app

Young Platform now offers to all its users the possibility to donate for Dynamo‘s new fundraising campaign, by inserting a banner inside the Stepdrop app and on the Young Platform exchange.

Dynamo Camp Onlus is an association that offers free Recreational Therapy programs to children from 6 to 17 years old, suffering from serious or chronic diseases, to their families and brothers and sisters. The activities take place at Dynamo Camp and, with Dynamo Programs, in hospitals, pathology associations and family homes in the main cities of the Italian territory.

“After contributing to the success of the Italian Red Cross fundraising with Helperbit, Young Platform’s commitment to supporting charitable initiatives continues,” said Andrea Ferrero, CEO & Co-Founder of Young Platform.

“In a difficult time like the one we are experiencing, we believe that it is more important than ever to support and introduce our users to realities like Dynamo that have been committed to helping the community for years”, concludes Ferrero.

Dynamo, which has been in business for over 13 years, structures its activities according to the Dynamo Recreational Therapy model, which has objectives of fun and entertainment but also and above all of being a stimulus to children’s abilities and of renewing self-confidence and hope.

“We hope that this is only the beginning of a long collaboration between our two realities. We are in fact already working on further initiatives, such as some ad hoc features on our Stepdrop app designed for Dynamo and the possibility of making donations directly in cryptocurrency,” says Diego D’Aquilio, CMO & Head of International Expansion of Young Platform.

Dynamo is part of the SeriousFun Children’s Network, which since its first Camp in Connecticut in 1988 by actor and philanthropist Paul Newman, has seen more than 1,185,000 children and family members participate in its programs around the world from more than 50 countries. Since 1988, 275,800 volunteers have dedicated their time to SeriousFun projects, demonstrating how deeply rooted and internationally present this organization is.

To help raise money for Dynamo