In 2019, we wrote a $1 million seed check to a first-time founder based on a six slide PowerPoint.
Six years later, we have a milestone transaction for both Greycroft and the broader New York venture market. In addition to being among the largest venture-backed M&A outcomes in New York City history*, we are proud that Greycroft was the sole institutional seed investor in the company, the largest institutional shareholder, and one of two investors to serve on the company’s Board of Directors.
We first met Marc Asch in late 2015, a few months after he left Point72. Our early conversations covered transaction settlement, counterparty risk, return on capital, and the size of the foreign exchange market. Marc spoke of “yards” – shorthand for billions of dollars – and introduced us to a world of market structure that sits behind every traded security and commodity on the planet.
We liked him right away.
What Marc realized is that the largest banks held a tenuous grip on clearing and prime brokerage because of their antiquated technology. As the markets became bigger, faster, and more correlated, an opportunity arose to rethink this technology from the ground up. Marc quietly set out to build that system and grew the company to over $100M revenue within a few years.
Most people have never heard the name Hidden Road, but many institutions know it well. There are three main reasons Hidden Road succeeded:
1. It was built with a CFO mindset.
Coming from SAC Capital and Point72, Marc Asch knew from experience where breakdowns happened in legacy prime brokerage models.
This showed up in his leadership: tight control, high standards, and zero tolerance for noise.
Marc was never interested in building for a story. He optimized for credibility. And that is why he was able to earn the trust of institutions.
2. Advisors became operators.
Many Hidden Road advisors ultimately ended up joining the company as full-time employees.
In my experience, this happens when a founder operates with an unwavering high bar for talent.
3. It scaled with discipline.
Last year, revenue grew from $30 million to over $100 million.
They raised capital at a valuation of approximately $900 million without ever chasing headlines.
Hidden Road did not scale on hype or subsidies. It ran lean, monetized early, and focused on capital efficiency from day one.
In a market as volatile as crypto, that discipline is rare.
Hidden Road wired the future of financial markets with the right foundation. It proves an old theory that you don’t need to make headlines to move markets. And in venture capital, those are often the fund-defining bets.
*Based off Pitchbook data as of April 7, 2025.
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