CoinDesk
Phantom has hired Alvin Hsia, Emily Hsia and Aris Samad, the trio behind Ventuals, the Hyperliquid-based project that shut down its OpenAI and Anthropic perpetual futures markets earlier this week. CEO Brandon Millman confirmed the three will join Phantom's trading and data teams, framing the move as part of a broader push to turn the consumer wallet into a full-stack trading surface.
Ventuals had been one of the most-watched experiments on Hyperliquid, letting users trade perpetual futures on the implied valuations of private AI labs. The project announced earlier this month it was winding down and migrating into another Hyperliquid-native build. Phantom's pickup of its founders signals that wallet-level perps distribution, not just exchange-level innovation, is where the next growth leg is being bet.
Why it matters
Phantom already calls itself the largest distribution partner in the Hyperliquid ecosystem, and the Ventuals hire lands at a moment when perpetuals are escaping their crypto-native origins. Perpetual futures, derivatives without an expiry date that let traders hold leveraged exposure indefinitely, have become one of the industry's fastest-growing products, with Kalshi launching its own perps desk last month after regulatory approval and traditional markets increasingly testing the always-on model.
For wallets, the read is structural. Phantom has spent the last year expanding from storage into swaps, staking and derivatives, with Millman writing that "open markets have become a major focus" and that Phantom "intend[s] to go deeper" on perps. Pulling in a team that already shipped a novel perps product on Hyperliquid is the most concrete signal yet that consumer wallets are positioning themselves as the default front-end for on-chain derivatives rather than as a passive sign-on layer.
Market impact
The immediate read is talent flow: Hyperliquid keeps producing teams that seed the broader ecosystem, and perps-native builders are now a scarce, mobile resource. For Phantom, the move compresses product timelines on a venue it already leans on for liquidity and routing.
Frequently asked questions
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Who did Phantom hire from the Hyperliquid ecosystem?
Phantom hired Alvin Hsia, Emily Hsia and Aris Samad, the three founders of Ventuals, the Hyperliquid-based project that shut down its OpenAI and Anthropic perpetual futures markets earlier this week.
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What was Ventuals and why did it shut down?
Ventuals ran perpetual futures markets on the implied valuations of private AI labs like OpenAI and Anthropic on Hyperliquid. The project announced earlier this month it was winding down and migrating into another Hyperliquid-native build.
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How does this fit Phantom's broader product strategy?
Phantom has been expanding from self-custody wallet into swaps, staking and derivatives. CEO Brandon Millman described perps and open markets as a major focus, and the Ventuals hire accelerates that push.
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What role does Phantom already play in the Hyperliquid ecosystem?
Phantom has said it is the largest distribution partner in the Hyperliquid ecosystem, routing user flow into Hyperliquid's on-chain perps books and acting as a consumer-facing front-end.
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Why do perpetual futures matter beyond crypto?
Perpetual futures let traders hold leveraged exposure indefinitely without expiry. Their around-the-clock liquidity and ability to track almost any asset have pushed the product into traditional markets, with Kalshi launching its own perps desk last month after regulatory approval.
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