Talos Taps Goldman for New Head of Strategy

Digital assets infrastructure provider Talos has hired Justin Schmidt as head of strategy. He joins from Goldman Sachs where he had served as head of digital asset markets since 2018.

In the new role, Schmidt will be responsible for developing, executing, and sustaining Talos’s strategic initiatives and managing business operations. In this role, he will also assist in recruiting talent and will drive the company’s growth internationally.

The Talos platform, which has been live since early 2019 and offers solutions across the full crypto trading lifecycle, from price discovery to execution through clearing and settlement and across spot, futures and FX markets, was publicly announced last year. The firm says it has been steadily expanding both its capabilities and its user base, reflecting the rapid pace of institutional digital asset adoption across the globe.

Schmidt comes to Talos with a 17-year track record in financial services that included serving as a senior vice president at an investment management firm and a quantitative equities portfolio manager for hedge funds in New York and London.

“I have known Justin for years and feel very lucky to have him part of the Talos team. Justin’s experience on the institutional side of digital assets combined with his background in capital markets could not have come at a more relevant time for our firm,” says Anton Katz, Talos’s co-founder and CEO. “We continue to see rapid growth of our business as a direct result of more institutions taking part in the digital assets ecosystem, and it is more important than ever to ensure that we deliver a complete suite of digital assets trading solutions to fund managers and the providers that service them. Justin’s addition to the Talos team exemplifies our commitment to enable larger institutions to participate meaningfully in the crypto asset class.”

Schmidt adds, “Global adoption of digital assets has continued into 2021. Traditional financial institutions are joining the fray in various capacities, including custody, markets, asset management, financing, and venture. I’m honoured to join Anton, Ethan, and the entire Talos team and help build modern financial market infrastructure for digital assets. I will focus extensively on our clients, growth, and supporting the team as we continue to deliver institutional-grade operational excellence.”