Anatoly Knyazev is one of the founders of EXANTE, and he is currently the executive Director of the brokerage firm. He has a background in mathematics and computer science, and he has a keen interest in cryptocurrency development and trading infrastructure. Aside from establishing EXANTE with founders Gatis Eglitis and Alexey Kirienko, Knyazev also founded a cryptocurrency hedge fund called Bitcoin Fund and an altcoin index fund called XAI Fund.
As an expert in trading and the financial markets, Knyazev has been a keynote speaker at many international conferences over the years, discussing the prospects of cryptocurrency and the development of blockchain technology. He is an advocate of digital currencies, and he is a well-respected figure in the industry, quoted often in well-known journals and newspapers such as The Independent and The Financial Times.
Let us take a closer look at Anatoly Knyazev of EXANTE, from his early career and interests to his involvement with EXANTE and advocacy for cryptocurrency.
Anatoly Knyazev’s early career and interests
Knyazev had been a student of mathematics and computer science at university, and he had always been interested in statistics, data analysis, and software development. He graduated with a bachelor’s and master’s degree in the subjects, and he applied his knowledge through working at Netcracker Technology Corporation, a provider of business support systems, operations support systems, and network functions virtualisation solutions. Knyazev was a software developer in his early career.
While working, Knyazev took his first steps in trading. He first approached the financial markets by looking for incorrect prices in derivatives and comparing them to the prices of underlying assets. He gained experience in arbitrage trading over time, and his interest in trading and investment grew as his profits did. Shortly after, he found himself in a community of likeminded traders and investors who wanted to develop themselves in the field. It was there he met Alexey Kirienko, with whom he would establish their own brokerage firm, EXANTE, some years later.
Collaboration with Kirienko and founding EXANTE
Knyazev and Kirienko first collaborated on creating software for traders, developing trading algorithms for enterprises. When the duo saw how profitable it was, they had a vision of creating their own brokerage firm where they could build trading algorithms and software for themselves.
In 2011, along with a third partner – Gatis Eglitis – the duo founded EXANTE in Malta. Eglitis was a fellow trader with a background in business development and international sales, having worked at Saxo Bank previously, in Denmark. Together, the trio launched the brokerage, and it became one of the most innovative trading solutions in Europe when it obtained the MFSA license to trade in the country. Over the years, EXANTE expanded its geographic footprint, and offices were set up in the United Kingdom, Cyprus, and Hong Kong. The broker obtained licensing from the FCA, the CySEC, and the SFC accordingly, and EXANTE’s clientele went global.
Today, the broker is well-respected, and it is known for its wide variety of instruments available for trading. EXANTE offers over 600,000 financial instruments across 50 global markets, including forex, stocks, ETFs, metals, bonds, options, and futures. True to its innovative spirit, it has its own bespoke trading solution – the EXANTE trading platform, developed and finetuned in-house. The trading platform contains a full set of indicators and an intuitive and customisable interface. It also provides direct access for live traders with 100% live rates for individual and corporate traders.
Cryptocurrency interest and advocacy
Knyazev is well-known in the financial world for his cryptocurrency interest and advocacy for the adoption of digital currencies. He is also an expert in blockchain technology. Outside of EXANTE, he founded Bitcoin Fund and XAI Fund. Bitcoin Fund quickly became the world’s most profitable hedge fund with an annual growth rate of nearly 5,000% in 2013. Additionally, Knyazev is the CTO of STASIS, which is the first platform to legally tokenise fiat currencies to transform them into digital versions on a blockchain quickly and securely.
As a recognised blockchain expert and cryptocurrency visionary, Knyazev has participated in many international conferences as a speaker. In 2020, he participated in the ANON Summit that took place online, joining the Trading on Market Volatility panel to share insights into market behaviours based on EXANTE’s client base. Knyazev believed that cryptocurrency would be a big part of the future, and he is excited to pioneer tools to work with it. These days, he focuses on educating the public on the benefits of digital currencies, and he joins discussions with investors from all over the world to discuss their potential.