GSR, a specialist in digital asset trading, has appointed Michael Bressler as Global Head of Sales.
Bressler will lead the firm’s ongoing expansion into the institutional market, developing trading, risk management, and capital strategies for the fast-growing base fund managers it serves.
Bressler joins GSR with over 20 years of experience in trading and institutional sales at top banks and hedge funds. Most recently, he was a Managing Director and Head of Western Region Sales & Marketing at JPMorgan, where he oversaw many of the bank’s top institutional relationships. Prior to this, Bressler also spent seven years as a Managing Director for Global Commodities at the bank. He began his career in commodity derivatives at Goldman Sachs (J.Aron) and also worked on the bank’s equity desk, before joining derivatives trading teams at Barclays Capital and Millennium Partners.
Cris Gil, Co-founder of GSR, says: “The trading needs of the institutional investor in digital assets are becoming more sophisticated. A core element of our business strategy for the next 12 months is to keep building out our quantitative trading and risk management capabilities and maintain our leadership as one of the top trading firms in crypto. Michael will play an instrumental role in that effort, given his institutional expertise and strengths and we’re looking forward to having his leadership on the team.”
Bressler says: “When it comes to investing in digital assets, Institutions have moved past curiosity and are looking into the practical implications, like execution quality, portfolio weightings, and risk management. This is exciting for people in traditional finance to make the leap and I was impressed with GSR’s reputation, leadership team, and technological strengths. “I’m excited to help traditional institutions navigate their entry into the digital asset space, supported by market-leading capabilities.”
GSR has rapidly expanded its team over the last 12 months, hiring former traders, risk managers and sales executives from major banks and hedge funds to further expand its institutional operations. Mr. Bressler’s hiring reflects an emerging trend among leading digital asset firms, where new sales and distribution channels for investment products are being developed in line with those that major institutions are familiar with for traditional asset classes. GSR is continuing to hire across the board and expects to have a headcount of 225 by the end of 2021.
