A Goldman Sachs partner will join Galaxy Digital to help bridge the gap between Wall Street and crypto

Quick Take

  • Damien Vanderwilt, a partner at Goldman Sachs, is joining Galaxy at the beginning of 2021
  • Vanderwilt, who currently leads FICC execution services, will leverage his network to lead distribution for Galaxy’s various businesses

Mike Novogratz's Galaxy Digital is bringing on a Goldman Sachs partner as its co-president and head of global markets.

Damien Vanderwilt will be joining Galaxy Digital after more than 20 years with the bulge bracket bank. He most recently served as its global head of Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities Execution Services. At the bank, he also played a role in building out Goldman's Marquee Trader, a single dealer trading platform. He got his start in equities execution services and trading in 2000. His tenure at the bank spanned roles in London, Hong Kong, and Sydney, as per his LinkedIn.

In his role at Galaxy, the Vanderwilt will leverage his contacts from the Wall Street world to drum up business across its respective units. In an interview with The Block, Novogratz said that a recent influx of macro hedge funds and pensions into the digital asset market made the pipeline for its products stronger than it has been historically. In many periods of Galaxy's history, it has struggled to churn a profit and avoid lay-offs. 

"In January, I was cautious and frustrated," Novogratz, a former macro trader, said. "But now I've been on so many freaking calls. The wealth channel is exciting, pensions are looking at more venture stuff and it feels like the business is growing fast." 

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"You have multiple hedge funds buying bitcoin as a macro play and almost every fund is looking at it," he added. 

The firm has been building out its trading capabilities to meet the needs of these clients, partnering with custody provider Bakkt on a service that aims to help large investors tap into the digital asset market. Galaxy has also recently built out its electronic sales and trading platform and, like many companies in the market, it has been eyeing prime brokerage services

Aside from trading, Vanderwilt will also help the investment banking business raise capital for clients and ramp up deal flow. The company recently advised Blockfolio on its $150 million sale to FTX, and is said to be raising capital for a large mining company and is working on bringing in more talent as it adjusts for the upcoming exit of Ian Taylor, who has led the investment banking business since 2018. Taylor will rejoin Goldman Sachs later this year.


© 2023 The Block. All Rights Reserved. This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.

About Author

Frank Chaparro is Host of The Scoop podcast and Director of Special Projects. He also writes a biweekly newsletter. Chaparro started his career at Business Insider, where he specialized in the intersection of digital assets and Wall Street, market structure, and financial technology. Soon after joining Business Insider out of Fordham University, Chaparro was interviewing top finance and tech executives, including billionaire Mark Cuban, “Flash Boys” star Brad Katsuyama, Cboe Global Markets CEO Ed Tilly, and New York Stock Exchange President Tom Farley. In 2018, he become a sought after reporter in the crypto world, interviewing luminaries such as Tyler Winklevoss, the cofounder of Gemini, Jeremy Allaire, the CEO of Circle, and Fundstrat head Tom Lee. For inquiries or tips, email [email protected].