Patrick Gruhn, LL.M., MBA
Chief Executive Officer, Director & Founder

Patrick Gruhn is an entrepreneur, professor,  lawyer, and software engineer, he brings over two decades of leadership experience across technology, law, and finance. He embarked upon his entrepreneurial journey at the mere age of 18 in Germany, establishing his first technology venture during the nascent stages of the dotcom era. Since then, he has founded and helmed numerous successful enterprises across Europe and the United States, including Perpetuals.com and previously DigitalAssets.AG, which was subsequently acquired by the FTX Group. In preceding years, he established WebActis, an AI-powered LegalTech company specializing in the automated analysis of insurance documentation, which was successfully divested to a leading European media and services conglomerate. Furthermore, he was the founder of MagicalWorks, a multi-award-winning German web hosting provider which was also sold in 2007.

With deep expertise in fintech regulation and emerging financial technologies he was appointed as a Professor of Practice in Entrepreneurship, Digital Innovation & Ethics at the European Institute of Management. He also finished multiple post-graduate academic programs and executive certificates, including an LL.M., an MBA, as well as advanced studies in blockchain technology and artificial intelligence at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Prof. Gruhn is a Member of the Founders Circle of the German University of Digital Science, an institution focused on IT, AI, and technology management. His professional memberships include the International Bar Association (IBA) — where he participates in the Banking & Financial Law, Technology Law, and Securities and Capital Markets Committees — as well as the German Informatics Society (Gesellschaft für Informatik, GI), the Strategic Management Society (SMS), and the Institute for Operations Research and the Management Sciences (INFORMS).

Satoshi Kobayashi
Co-Chief Executive Officer and Director

Mr. Kobayashi has served as our Chief Executive Officer and Director since our inception. Mr. Kobayashi co-founded our Company in May 2018. Mr. Kobayashi served as the Representative Director with FEELO.Co. overseeing that company’s entire merchandising business from August 2016 to December 2018. Mr. Kobayashi acted as a Manager of Pasona Inc., where Mr. Kobayashi was in charge of temporary staff management and consulting from January 2013 to December 2015.

He founded EarlyWorks Co., Ltd. in May 2018 and served as its Chief Executive Officer, guiding the company through its growth trajectory until its transformative business combination with Perpetual Markets Ltd. in January 2026, resulting in the formation of Perpetuals.com Ltd. Prior to the business combination, EarlyWorks established itself as a pioneer in advanced distributed computing infrastructure, developing proprietary cutting-edge technologies for enterprise applications. Most notably, EarlyWorks created the GRID LEDGER SYSTEM, a next-generation blockchain-type database architecture designed and developed entirely in-house as an integrated management system for distributed computing environments, serving as foundational infrastructure for emerging technologies across multiple industries.

Matthew Nicoletti
Chief Strategy Officer and Director

Matthew Nicoletti is an entrepreneur, capital markets strategist, and luxury real estate developer, bringing over fifteen years of leadership experience across public listings, mergers and acquisitions, and high-end property development. He began his professional career following his graduation from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Communications in 2007, subsequently transitioning into investment banking in Charlotte before returning to Florida to pursue his entrepreneurial ambitions.

He is the co-founder and managing member of One9 LLC, an elite capital markets advisory firm specializing in guiding private companies through successful public listings via traditional IPOs and reverse takeovers. One9 delivers bespoke solutions for startups, mid-market firms, and established corporations, with particular expertise in regulatory filings including Form 10-K, 10-Q, and 8-K compliance. Additionally, he founded and serves as CEO of Vadar Management LLC, a dynamic management firm headquartered in Indialantic, Florida, which specializes in operational optimization, value-creation planning, and post-acquisition integration services—delivering measurable results including substantial EBITDA growth and a 20% average increase in operational efficiency for portfolio companies across technology, healthcare, and consumer goods sectors.

In the real estate sector, Mr. Nicoletti founded and leads Distinguished LLC, operating under the RenovateFL brand, which has established itself as Florida's premier luxury development firm. With over thirty years of combined team experience, the firm has served more than 300 clients across 18 Florida cities and secured over $20 million in funding, delivering bespoke luxury homes, innovative commercial spaces, and eco-conscious designs. Under his leadership, the firm is currently expanding its footprint into North Carolina and Pennsylvania markets, targeting luxury residential and mixed-use developments.

Dr. Robin Matzke
Head of Perpetuals.com Europe and Co-Founder

Dr. Robin Matzke is an entrepreneur and attorney bringing deep expertise in securities law, digital assets regulation, and financial technology. He serves as Executive Director of PM MTF Ltd., the MiFID-licensed entity operating the company's Multilateral Trading Facility. As a co-founder of Perpetuals.com, he has been instrumental in shaping the legal and regulatory architecture underpinning the company's innovative financial products.
Prior to Perpetuals.com, Dr. Matzke co-founded DigitalAssets.AG, a pioneering tokenized assets platform that was subsequently acquired by the FTX Group. He also founded own.capital, a tokenization-as-a-service company that issued security tokens for institutional clients from 2017 to 2019—positioning him among the earliest practitioners in the European security token space.
Dr. Matzke earned his doctorate magna cum laude from Humboldt University Berlin with a dissertation on virtual stock, establishing his academic credentials at the intersection of law and finance. He completed his legal studies at Humboldt University Berlin and passed the German bar examination with distinction. His clerkships included positions at a venture capital boutique law firm, the German Ministry of Business, and the District Attorney's Office in the Organized Crime Unit.
As a recognized authority on digital securities regulation, Dr. Matzke served as Special Advisor to the German Parliament on introducing the legal framework for digital securities. He has held positions as lecturer and assistant professor at Humboldt University Berlin and the German Attorney Academy, and serves as editor of RDi, a leading German law journal addressing legal issues in digital markets. His scholarly work has been published in numerous leading German law journals.

Nayja Ziourti
Head of Regulatory Affairs Europe & Co-Founder

Nayia Ziourti brings over 15 years of distinguished experience in financial services law to Perpetuals.com, where she oversees the group's legal and regulatory architecture. Her career spans the full spectrum of EU financial regulation, from shaping policy at the highest levels of government to building compliance frameworks for some of the industry's most innovative platforms.

Before co-founding Perpetuals.com, Nayia served as General Counsel at FTX Europe, where she led legal and regulatory affairs across Europe and the Middle East. Prior to that, she held a Director position at PwC's Legal Financial Services practice, advising major EU financial institutions on MiFID II, CRD IV, and AIFM Law compliance.

Nayia's regulatory expertise is rooted in her tenure as an Officer at the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), where she established the Policy Department and launched the Innovation Hub focused on FinTech and crypto-assets. During this period, she represented Cyprus at EU Council negotiations and ESMA committees, directly contributing to the frameworks that now govern European financial markets. She was seconded to Brussels during Cyprus's Presidency of the EU Council to participate in negotiations on MiFID II/MiFIR.

A recognized voice in digital asset regulation, Nayia served as a contributor to ESMA's Financial Innovation Standing Committee Task Force on ICOs and Virtual Currencies.

Nayia holds an LLM in Corporate Finance from the London School of Economics and Political Science and an LLB from the University of Warwick. She completed her Legal Practice Course at BPP Law School in London and is a qualified Advocate with the Cyprus Bar Association. She also holds CySEC's Advanced Financial Services Legal Framework Certificate.

Sean Prescott
Chief Technology Officer

Sean Prescott brings over 20 years of experience in financial markets, encryption, and large-scale infrastructure to his role as Group CTO of Perpetuals.com. He oversees the company's trading systems, self-custody architecture, and quantum-resilient security framework.

A licensed Eurex Derivatives Trader since 2006, Sean is the inventor of the Perpetuals Hybrid-Vault Transaction System, Quantum Storage Engine, and Entropy-as-a-Service Network, technologies deployed by governments, enterprises, and Web3 protocols globally. He founded and architected Ledgera, the Layer-0/Layer-2 infrastructure powering Perpetuals.com's cross-chain operations.

Sean previously served as federal program manager and encryption lead for the Swiss National Security Agency and Federal Office of Technology. He delivered the DefCon 33 keynote "Who Controls the Quantum Future?"

He holds a degree in Computer Science and Network Engineering from the Technical Business School of Zurich and maintains experience and certifications across ISO 27001, ISO 27005, ISO 18033-5, ISO 20022, PQE, and SOCx frameworks.

Aaron Rudder
Chief Product Officer

Aaron Rudder is a finance and economics professional driven by a singular vision: leveraging emerging technology to build fairer, more efficient capital markets. As Chief Product Officer at Perpetuals.com, he leads the design and development of the company's trading products, research initiatives, and user experience—shaping how institutions and individuals interact with the next generation of financial infrastructure.

Aaron joined Perpetuals.com as Head of Crypto Finance & Research, where he has been instrumental in implementing the company's EU-regulated Multilateral Trading Facility. His expertise spans the intersection of traditional finance, digital assets, and regulatory frameworks—a perspective forged through years of building first-of-their-kind products in the tokenization space.

Previously, Aaron served as Head of Crypto Research at FTX EU (formerly DigitalAssets.AG), one of the first EU-regulated investment firms specializing in tokenization and structured digital asset products. There, he developed research frameworks and product strategies that bridged conventional finance with blockchain-native innovation.

Aaron's leadership in the digital asset space began during his time as President of the Oregon Blockchain Group—the nation's first venture capital-supported collegiate organization for active management of a liquid token fund, launched in partnership with Collab+Currency. Under his leadership, the organization supported academic publications with research faculty, provided consulting services to industry partners, and secured dedicated corporate funding from Ripple.

Aaron graduated summa cum laude from the University of Oregon with a degree in Finance and Economics, ranking in the 98th–100th percentile of his class. He holds certifications from Harvard Online in Python and Computer Science, UC Berkeley Executive Education in AI Strategy & Application, Moody's in Advanced Derivative Markets, and Wall Street Prep in Financial Modeling.

Beyond finance, Aaron is conversationally fluent in French and is an accomplished climber with certifications in wilderness navigation, anchor construction, rappelling, and alpine rope work.