Key Takeaways
- • Wincent, a Gibraltar-headquartered crypto hedge fund, plans to grow its headcount by more than 50 this year, from roughly 130 to over 180 by year-end, according to a Financial News report cited by Hedgeweek.
- • The firm has delivered year-to-date returns of 11% in 2025, following a strong start to the year.
- • Planned hires span traders, quantitative researchers, software engineers, and developers, pointing to a continued shift toward automated and systematic strategies.
- • Bitcoin has gained nearly 20% year-to-date and touched an all-time high of $111,000 on 22 May, while the broader crypto market has added roughly $300bn in value since January.
- • Volatility following US tariff announcements in early April created opportunities for directional and quantitative crypto funds, with Tephra Digital up 15% in April and Pythagoras Investments' Alpha Long Biased strategy up 16% over the same period.
Summary
Wincent, a Gibraltar-headquartered crypto hedge fund, is set to expand its team by more than 50 people this year after a strong start to 2025, according to a report by Financial News citing people familiar with the matter. The firm is expected to grow from approximately 130 staff to over 180 by year-end, with hiring focused on traders, quantitative researchers, software engineers, and developers.
The firm has delivered year-to-date returns of 11%. Founded in 2017 by Slovakian brothers Matus and Michal Kopf, Wincent began as a manual crypto trading operation run from the founders' living room. The Kopf brothers later pivoted to automation and systematic trading, building proprietary trading tools that helped the firm scale through earlier crypto market cycles. The fund is now led by CEO Samuel Hapak, formerly of fintech developer Vacuumlabs.
The hiring push comes as digital assets continue to rally. Bitcoin, the largest cryptoasset by market capitalisation, has gained nearly 20% since the start of the year and reached an all-time high of $111,000 on 22 May. The broader crypto market has added roughly $300bn in value since January, despite heightened volatility triggered by US tariff announcements in early April. That volatility has created opportunities for directional and quantitative crypto funds. US-based Tephra Digital posted a 15% return in April, narrowing its year-to-date losses to 4%, while Pythagoras Investments' Alpha Long Biased strategy gained 16% over the same period.
The firm has delivered year-to-date returns of 11%. Founded in 2017 by Slovakian brothers Matus and Michal Kopf, Wincent began as a manual crypto trading operation run from the founders' living room. The Kopf brothers later pivoted to automation and systematic trading, building proprietary trading tools that helped the firm scale through earlier crypto market cycles. The fund is now led by CEO Samuel Hapak, formerly of fintech developer Vacuumlabs.
The hiring push comes as digital assets continue to rally. Bitcoin, the largest cryptoasset by market capitalisation, has gained nearly 20% since the start of the year and reached an all-time high of $111,000 on 22 May. The broader crypto market has added roughly $300bn in value since January, despite heightened volatility triggered by US tariff announcements in early April. That volatility has created opportunities for directional and quantitative crypto funds. US-based Tephra Digital posted a 15% return in April, narrowing its year-to-date losses to 4%, while Pythagoras Investments' Alpha Long Biased strategy gained 16% over the same period.
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