# HYPERITHM HYPERITHM is a Digital Asset / Crypto based in Tokyo, Japan. ## Overview - **Organization type:** Digital Asset / Crypto - **Headquarters:** Tokyo, Japan - **Region:** Asia - **Address:** Tokyo, Japan - **Founded:** 2017 - **Assets under management:** 100–250 million (Altss estimate) - **Website:** hyperithm.com - **LinkedIn:** https://www.linkedin.com/company/hyperithm ## Regulatory record - **Reports private funds:** No ## About HYPERITHM was founded in 2017 by Lloyd Lee and Sangrok Oh, two technology operators who moved early to institutionalize digital-asset investing in Northeast Asia. Lee previously held engineering and quantitative roles at SoftBank and Naver, while Oh brought deep regional market-structure knowledge from derivatives trading. The firm launched in Tokyo and added a Seoul office to bridge the two most liquid institutional crypto markets in Asia outside Singapore — a deliberate dual-jurisdiction structure that few competitors had attempted at the time. The firm deploys capital through two primary strategies: quantitative market-making and algorithmic trading across centralized and decentralized exchanges, and a venture capital arm that writes early-stage checks into blockchain infrastructure and decentralized finance protocols. Its market-making operation provides liquidity to token projects and exchanges under commercial agreements, while the trading book runs systematic long-short and arbitrage strategies on a proprietary technology stack. The venture portfolio includes investments in Berachain, a high-performance Layer 1 blockchain, and Puffer Finance, a liquid staking protocol on Ethereum. HYPERITHM invests primarily in teams building across Japan, Korea, and broader Asia-Pacific, with some exposure to US-based protocol developers. HYPERITHM became one of the earliest foreign-affiliated firms to register as a Type II Financial Instruments Business Operator with Japan's Financial Services Agency in 2020, subsequently obtaining a crypto-asset exchange service provider license. That registration permits the firm to custody client assets, market funds, and operate within Japan's defined regulatory perimeter — a high-barrier license that full-legacy asset managers struggled to obtain. In early 2024, the firm launched a dedicated token advisory business, providing treasury management and market-making services to protocol foundations in Asia. Headcount is not publicly disclosed but industry peers estimate the team at 20–30 professionals split between Tokyo and Seoul. HYPERITHM's structural differentiator is its regulatory standing. Japan's Financial Services Agency issues crypto-asset licenses sparingly and with intensive compliance requirements — most trading firms operate offshore and cannot directly solicit domestic institutional capital. HYPERITHM's licensed status means Japanese pension funds, corporate treasuries, and regional banks can allocate to its strategies without routing capital through Cayman structures or facing unregulated counterparty risk. That gatekeeper positioning gives the firm a local-moat distribution advantage that offshore managers cannot replicate. ## Sectors - Digital Assets - FinTech - Blockchain Infrastructure ## Offices - Seoul, South Korea ## People - Lloyd Lee — Co-Founder and CEO - Sangrok Oh — Co-Founder and COO ## Questions ### Who runs investment decisions at HYPERITHM? Co-founder Lloyd Lee oversees investment strategy as CEO, with a background in quantitative engineering at SoftBank and Naver. The firm operates a flat investment committee structure where Lee and Co-Founder Sangrok Oh jointly approve venture allocations. Quantitative trading strategies are systematic and managed by the core technology team in Tokyo. ### Is HYPERITHM a licensed entity, and why does that matter for institutional investors? Yes. HYPERITHM registered as a Type II Financial Instruments Business Operator with Japan's Financial Services Agency in 2020 and holds a crypto-asset exchange service provider license. This regulatory status means institutional investors can allocate through a regulated domestic structure rather than routing capital to unregulated offshore vehicles. The license also subjects the firm to capital adequacy, custody, and reporting requirements that provide structural investor protections absent in unlicensed competitors. ### Does HYPERITHM invest in fund commitments or only direct deals? On the venture side, HYPERITHM invests through direct equity and token warrant structures — the firm does not operate as a fund of funds. Its quantitative strategies are proprietary and available to external investors through separately managed accounts or commingled fund vehicles. The firm has not publicly disclosed acting as an LP in third-party venture funds. ### What investment stages does HYPERITHM target in its venture strategy? HYPERITHM concentrates on early-stage investments — seed and Series A rounds across blockchain infrastructure, decentralized finance, and adjacent crypto-native verticals. Known portfolio companies include Berachain and Puffer Finance, both backed during their earliest institutional rounds. The firm participates in token sale allocations when available alongside equity positions. ### What is HYPERITHM's geographic focus? The firm operates from Tokyo and Seoul with investment mandates covering Japan, Korea, and broader Asia-Pacific. Its quantitative trading business is exchange-agnostic and operates globally. The venture practice prioritizes teams building in Northeast Asian markets but selectively backs US-based protocol developers when they have strong Asian distribution plans. ### How does HYPERITHM source proprietary deal flow? The dual-office structure in Tokyo and Seoul provides on-the-ground access to developer communities, exchange relationships, and corporate blockchain initiatives across the two markets. Its market-making operations create continuous commercial relationships with token projects that frequently produce venture allocation opportunities. The firm competes for protocol-foundation treasury deals — a sourcing channel that pure-venture firms without liquidity infrastructure cannot access. ## Related profiles - [Merion Investment Management](https://altss.com/profile/merion-investment-management-lp) --- Last updated: 2026-06-03T20:00:00.000Z Canonical page: https://altss.com/profile/hyperithm-co Maintained by Altss — https://altss.com — methodology: https://altss.com/methodology