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Swyftx Acquires Caleb & Brown
Swyftx Acquires Caleb & Brown

Transaction Overview

On July 1st, 2025, Swyftx, one of the largest Australian cryptocurrency exchanges, announced a definitive agreement to acquire Caleb & Brown, a high-net-worth-focused crypto brokerage, for an undisclosed amount.

 

Target: Caleb & Brown

Caleb and Brown is a Melbourne-based, high net worth focused crypto brokerage that specializes in personalized trading services across the digital asset landscape. Caleb & Brown focuses on the relationship model used successfully across traditional  financial services – every client that comes onto their platform gets assigned a broker to assist them in executing trades  and handling all customer service needs. Caleb and Brown’s core services include 1) Brokerage Services, which provide personalized 24/7 trading support for 250+ digital assets, 2) an OTC Desk, which provides high volume trading solutions with deep liquidity and competitive pricing, 3) the Caleb and Brown Asset Management, an actively managed crypto asset fund for accredited investor, 4) crypto custody. 

 

The business has more than AUD $2 billion of digital assets under custody and was founded by Rupert Hackett and Dr. Prash Puspanathan in 2016. C&B is led by CEO Jackson Zeng and has 64 team members across both Australia and the US. Caleb & Brown has not raised any outside capital. 

 

Architect Partners’ Observations

Architect Partners acted as the exclusive financial advisor to Caleb & Brown. 

 

Swyftx’s acquisition of Caleb & Brown marks the largest acquisition targeting high net worth crypto investors. It also reflects two important shifts in the evolution of crypto exchanges, particularly within the ANZ region.

 

First, high-net-worth client service is becoming a strategic differentiator. Exchanges are beginning to recognize that personalized brokerage and deep client relationships offer a competitive advantage while greatly reducing attrition. This is a model that high-net-worth clients are accustomed to in their financial lives. Caleb & Brown’s approach, which assigns a dedicated broker to every client, stands apart from the high-volume, low-touch models that dominate the market. Swyftx gains access not only to clients but also to an established business model that emphasizes trust, service, and retention in a way few crypto exchanges have pursued.

 

Second, this is a milestone moment for ANZ crypto M&A. While there have been many plays for global expansion by exchanges, this is the first of its kind in Australia moving into the US, signaling that the region is entering a more active phase of market maturity. 

 

We believe this transaction will serve as a catalyst for further strategic activity to expand globally and to augment services as companies seek differentiation in both product and customer segments.

 

Strategic Rationale

Swyftx is acquiring Caleb & Brown to expand into the United States via C&B’s regulatory framework, and to acquire the relationship model inherently required with a higher-tier customer base. This acquisition will grant Swyftx entry into the U.S. 12 to 24 months faster than otherwise possible organically. Furthermore, the acquisition diversifies Swyftx’s primarily retail client base to include 25k+ high net worth individuals in numerous countries. 

 

“Caleb & Brown has quietly established one of the most impressive brokerage offerings in the world, with a heavily differentiated private client service. We see enormous growth potential.” – Jason Titman

Insights

Week of November 11 – November 17

Todd White
November 20, 2024
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November 11 – November 17 (Published November 20th)

 

PERSPECTIVES by Todd White

 

40 Crypto Private Financings Raised: $194M

Rolling 3-Month-Average: $220M

Rolling 52-Week Average: $220M

 

 

Zero Gravity Labs (0GL), a team developing a decentralized AI operating system, closed a solid $40 million seed round last week, coupled with a $250 million token purchase commitment for digital asset liquidity. The team envisions their operating system providing blockchain-based infrastructure for decentralized AI applications.

 

 

To many, AI and crypto seem to be natural, perhaps even mutually dependent, bedfellows. AI may need blockchain to authenticate outputs and ensure data integrity, provide transparency and security, assure the provenance of both content and creations, protect against (or at least identify) deep fakes, and efficiently manage the massive amounts of data processing that AI engines require.

 

 

Crypto can also benefit from AI’s ability to process vast amounts of data, automate complex processes, and augment human developers’ ability to conceive and develop new tools. Numerous use cases are emerging, such as enhanced data training and zero-knowledge machine learning. More fundamentally, AI “agents” may emerge to become dominant users of on-chain and cross-chain tools, with a unique ability to quickly learn their way around a notoriously clunky crypto user experience.

 

 

Integrating this mutual dependence into a platform for mutual growth could prove synergistic. 0GL’s dAIOS (decentralized AI operating system) will deploy a modular and layered approach to reduce costs and complexity in processing vast amounts of data and managing computational complexity, while keeping datasets decentralized. The current financing round follows their $35 million pre-seed announced in March. These are big numbers for early rounds, reflecting both the cost of developing first-of-a-kind technology and some leading investors’ willingness to fund the burn.

 

 

The convergence of AI and blockchain seems well underway, with competitors such as EigenLayer and Celestia also gaining momentum this year. Time will tell how truly complementary the match between AI and crypto will be, yet the robust investor support for 0GL and others suggests that crypto-AI infrastructure is in vogue with investors.

 

 

Contact ryan@architectpartners.com to schedule a meeting.