Ithaca Protocol, an innovative player in the crypto options market, has officially launched its live beta platform. Aiming to set a new standard in the industry, Ithaca is the brainchild of an ex-Goldman Sachs partner and a former Amber Group executive, with backing from prominent firms such as Cumberland and Wintermute Ventures. The protocol stands out as the first in the market to offer executable prices across a comprehensive range of financial products, including vanilla options, digital options, option strategies, forwards, and structured products. This extensive offering totals over 250 prices across various strikes and expiries.
The key innovation of Ithaca Protocol lies in its auction-based matching engine. This engine enables more trades to be filled with the same number of orders compared to standard auction systems. Users can tailor their exposure to any anticipated market move and desired scenario, making it a versatile tool across decentralized finance (DeFi), centralized finance (CeFi), and traditional finance (TradFi). The protocol’s architecture is built on off-chain matching, Arbitrum on-chain settlement, and Axelar cross-chain bridging, providing a robust and secure foundation for its operations.
The beta launch follows the successful completion of Ithaca’s Open Alpha phase, marking another step toward the protocol’s decentralization goals. In the near future, on-chain actors will be able to verifiably spin up and operate instances of Ithaca’s key risk-sharing ecosystem components, including matching, collateral optimization, and value-at-risk (VAR) engines.
Ithaca Protocol’s founding team said, “Today’s launch is a major milestone in our journey to transform the world of options and structured products, and with deeper liquidity now available over and above the financial engineering inherent in the Ithaca Matching Engine, more users will be able to execute on their ideas reliably. By enabling the emergence of a trust-minimized and disruptive ecosystem, we shall unlock new possibilities in risk sharing and empower users with unprecedented access to a broad range of risk sharing instruments.”
Unlocking New Possibilities
Coinciding with the beta launch, Ithaca Protocol has also announced a formula-based airdrop program designed to incentivize liquidity, reward early adopters, and drive ecosystem development. Season 1 of the airdrop campaign will last approximately six months and will feature two airdrop events. Over time, at least 23% of Ithaca’s total token supply will be distributed through airdrops and incentive programs.
Participants can earn points by executing transactions, submitting orders, engaging on social media, and joining campaigns. To date, Ithaca Protocol has raised $2.5 million, attracting investment from notable backers such as Cumberland, Wintermute Ventures, Room40, Andrew Keys, Ghaf Capital, and Axelar co-founder Georgios Vlachos.
Ithaca Protocol is a non-custodial, composable options protocol designed to democratize access to advanced financial engineering. Its auction-based matching engine facilitates greater liquidity for a given number of orders, empowering users to tailor their exposure to market moves and scenarios. By leveling the playing field, Ithaca provides direct access to sophisticated risk-sharing instruments with just a few clicks.