Strategic Management Across Crypto, Media, and Finance
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): A Further Inquiry
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2025/09/15
Part 2 of 2
Patrick Gruhn, former head of FTX Europe and founder of Perpetuals.com, is a legal and tech expert expanding into faith-based media. He repurchased FTX Europe and later sold it to Backpack Exchange. Gruhn, who also leads a German Catholic TV network, aims to bring fairness to crypto trading. He advocates for regulatory oversight and safer financial products. His latest venture, Perpetuals.com, focuses on self-clearing, regulated perpetual futures. In this 2-part interview, Gruhn emphasizes strategic management across industries, comparing media and crypto operations. Passionate about fair trading and long-term business sustainability, he continues to innovate in finance, technology, and media.
Scott Douglas Jacobsen: Is there a similarity between the strategy or operations of a crypto company or website and those of a media company? Or are they completely different?
Patrick Gruhn: I don’t know. There are differences in day-to-day operations.
For example, you must manage wallet security and IT infrastructure in crypto. In contrast, in media, you deal with live broadcasts and IT security for streaming. So, the hands-on tasks are different.
However, I’m strategic, and management principles apply across all industries. After I sold my first company, I worked for a few years as an interim manager, overseeing various companies, including some in the electricity sector in Germany.
Through those experiences, I saw that strategic management is a generalized concept that applies across industries, whether it’s crypto, media, or energy.
Strategic management is about understanding the necessary tasks, assembling the right team, and executing a clear vision.
For example, you want a secure wallet system. In that case, you need experts who can tell you what security measures are necessary. If you want redundant live broadcasts from Rome, you need professionals to set up the infrastructure. But beyond the technical details, you must connect these tasks to a broader strategy.
Success in any industry comes down to asking:
- Where do we want to go, and why?
- What is the market opportunity?
- What is missing for our audience or customers?
For our nonprofit TV network, we analyzed what our audience was missing. We saw that people wanted live broadcasts of the Pope and events from Rome, so we set a strategic goal: Provide live broadcasts from Rome.
We needed to build partnerships, negotiate contracts, and set up the necessary technical infrastructure to achieve this. We installed cameras in a church in Rome, and now, we broadcast live from that church once a week.
So, we identified a strategic need and then mapped out the necessary steps to achieve it, from legal agreements to technical execution. Crypto works the same way.
We looked at the European market and realized something was missing: Perpetual futures. Foreign companies only offered these products illegally, which meant European traders lacked a regulated alternative.
That’s why I co-founded Perpetuals.com with Robin and Naya. Our strategic goal was to create a fully compliant, self-clearing perpetual futures exchange for Europe.
Once we defined that goal, we mapped out the necessary steps—building the technology, obtaining regulatory approvals, and setting up clearing mechanisms.
So, whether it’s a live broadcast from Rome or a regulated futures exchange, the strategic process is the same:
- Identify what is missing.
- Set a clear objective.
- Define the required steps.
- Bring in experts to execute the technical details.
The industry may be different, but the strategic thinking remains the same. So, strategic management is the key. It applies to all industries, whether crypto, media, or finance.
Jacobsen: What’s next for you in the digital finance and media landscape? Are any new ventures on the horizon?
Gruhn: Yes.
We are about to go live with Perpetuals.com. I can’t reveal everything until the official launch, but I can give you a little teaser. We are introducing several new products alongside perpetual futures.
One issue in crypto that most traders don’t realize is the lack of fairness in the market. If you look at a simple question—what would someone have made if they had invested $5,000 in Bitcoin ten years ago?—the answer would be a significant return.
Now, compare that to the reality for most average crypto traders today. If you ask them how much they’ve made from a $5,000 investment, many will say:
- “I lost it.”
- “I lost half of it.”
- “I made $500.”
Why? Because the crypto market is not built for fairness, and part of that comes from the lack of regulation.
Currently, many crypto exchanges engage in front-running and preferential treatment for market makers. Certain insiders gain access to privileged information that would be considered illegal insider trading in a regulated financial market.
That’s what I want to change.
I want to create a fairer trading environment in which retail traders are not systematically disadvantaged. Right now, retail traders compete against high-frequency traders and institutional market makers, who have unfair advantages in terms of execution speed, privileged access, and exclusive insights.
Additionally, we are developing new financial products that are safer for retail traders.
I love perpetual futures—I recently wrote an academic paper about them—but they carry risks, especially for retail users.
So, we are introducing new products that allow traders to speculate on Bitcoin’s price movements with built-in risk protections.
For example, we will offer products with:
- Guaranteed stop-loss mechanisms—no slippage, no unexpected liquidation.
- Protection during extreme market volatility—so traders don’t lose their entire portfolio in a sudden market crash.
If we want crypto to become mainstream, we must ensure it is fair and safe for retail traders. We have already seen how predatory some financial products can be, especially in Europe with CFDs (Contracts for Difference).
- In Canada, CFDs are regulated but still available.
- In the U.S., CFDs are banned for retail traders.
- In Europe, many CFD providers exploit retail traders, with 80% losing money.
CFD providers often profit directly from client losses, which creates a predatory system. We want to change that. That’s why, with Perpetuals.com, we are developing new financial products that will make trading safer and more transparent.
Jacobsen: Patrick, thank you very much for your time today. It was nice to meet you.
Gruhn: Thanks for having me.
Jacobsen: Thank you. Bye.
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