QFEX secures £7m to build exchange for perpetual futures on traditional assets
This article covers QFEX, a fintech startup, which has raised £7m in a growth funding round to build a new trading exchange offering perpetual futures on traditional assets. The development aims to support trading infrastructure innovation and is relevant to professional traders, clearing and execution providers and the UK fintech ecosystem.
QFEX, a fintech startup founded by Cambridge mathematicians Annanay Kapila and Joshua Wharton, has raised £7m in a growth funding round to build a new trading exchange that targets perpetual futures on traditional assets — a product the founders say could change how markets access clearing and execution infrastructure.
Why it matters
The exchange and clearing market is a large, established part of global financial infrastructure. Any entrant promising a new model for derivatives trading and direct market access could shift how trading costs and market structure evolve, particularly for professional traders and other market participants. QFEX’s pitch — combining perpetual futures for traditional assets with a commission-only model and direct access — is an attempt to address those core market economics rather than serving retail-oriented niches.
Inside the product
QFEX describes itself as an exchange built natively for perpetual futures tied to traditional assets. The company says the platform offers direct access to markets without brokers, a commission-only revenue model, and more leverage for traders. According to the founders, those design choices are intended to lower fees for end users and change how liquidity and clearing are provided.
Technical details, regulatory approvals and clearing partnerships were not disclosed in the announcement. How QFEX will interface with existing clearinghouses, margin requirements and risk management systems will be key to whether its model can scale into the established exchange and clearing ecosystem.
Who are the investors?
QFEX’s raise was backed by a mix of venture and accelerator backers. The announcement says the round was led by Yuri Sagalov from General Catalyst, with participation from Abhishek Sharma of Nexus Venture Partners, Y Combinator, Paul Graham and other unnamed backers.
General Catalyst is a US venture capital firm; Nexus Venture Partners is a cross-border VC with roots in India and the US; Y Combinator is the well-known startup accelerator; Paul Graham is a co-founder of Y Combinator and a longstanding angel investor. Their involvement signals interest from established fintech and early-stage investors in trading infrastructure plays.
In the announcement, Annanay Kapila, co-founder at QFEX, said:
I’m excited to announce that QFEX has raised $9.5M in seed funding led by Yuri Sagalov from General Catalyst, with participation from Abhishek Sharma from Nexus Venture Partners, Y Combinator, Paul Graham and others.
Josh and I never planned to start a company, and the idea of building an exchange seemed totally unfeasible. After uni, we took normal paths.
Back in January, I went on a boys’ trip with Josh and others in Cambodia. On a bus headed towards our hotel, we spawned discussions surrounding a new form of financial exchange. And on that day, QFEX was born.
QFEX is the first financial exchange to offer perpetual futures natively built for traditional assets.
Traders on our platform have direct access to markets with no brokers.
This means that for the end user (you), there are lower fees, fairer markets and more leverage.
Additionally, our exchange is commission only, which means that we only make money when you win.
In the announcement, Abhishek Sharma, from Nexus Venture Partners, said:
So excited to partner with Annanay Kapila and Joshua Wharton as they build QFEX, the first financial exchange to offer perpetual futures natively built for traditional assets.
If you're researching potential backers in this space:
- Explore our list of fintech venture capital firms in the UK
- Browse our directory of fintech angel investors in the UK
Founder perspective
Kapila and Wharton met as freshers at Cambridge and bonded over maths and markets. Kapila moved into quantitative trading and academic work: he studied maths, conducted quantum computing research and later worked as a quantitative trader at Flow Traders and Tower Research Capital in London. Wharton most recently worked at Citadel before co-founding QFEX.
Their story — from campus collaborators to traders and now exchange builders — frames QFEX as an attempt by practitioners to re-engineer market infrastructure they found constraining.
The bigger picture
Trading infrastructure is an area that requires deep technical expertise, regulatory navigation and significant capital. The £7m round gives QFEX initial runway to build product and engage with market participants, but will not remove the regulatory and operational hurdles that exchanges face in Europe and the UK.
For the UK fintech ecosystem, the deal is another example of investor appetite for infrastructure-focused fintech startups. Whether QFEX’s model gains traction will depend on its ability to demonstrate robust risk controls, regulatory compliance and partnerships with clearing and settlement providers — factors that determine whether a novel exchange can move from niche to mainstream.
The development also adds to conversations across Europe about how new trading venues and clearing models might coexist with established exchanges and post-trade services.
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