Dmitry Tokarev, CEO of Copper: The True Drivers of Crypto’s Buy-Side Infrastructure

— Financial infrastructure in crypto requires professional custody, administration, prime brokerage, and settlement frameworks similar to traditional markets, not just security-focused wallet storage.

— The "Walled Garden" framework solves a critical LP concern: preventing fund managers from withdrawing assets to personal wallets by restricting transfers to predefined execution venues only.

— Legacy banking infrastructure built in the 1970s–90s is costly and inefficient; blockchain can serve as a single source of truth, eliminating redundant database synchronization across multiple institutions.

— Institutional adoption is being driven by large LPs (insurance funds, pension funds, family offices) who demand robust frameworks and minimum ticket sizes (often $10M+), forcing asset managers to professionalize or lose capital.

— Crypto market maturation filtered out "tourists" during the 2018 downturn, leaving serious operators with institutional discipline and proper investment strategies.

— Institutional infrastructure providers (like Copper) are filling the gap left by early crypto custodians who didn't understand business applications of custody beyond security.

— If you're a crypto asset manager seeking institutional capital, expect LPs to demand professional infrastructure: independent custody, third-party administration, segregated wallets, and restricted withdrawal frameworks—not self-custody or self-administration.

— Large institutional allocations now require minimum tickets of $10M+, meaning fund managers must build compliant infrastructure before they can access significant LP capital; the infrastructure must be in place before the money arrives.

— Regulatory arbitrage opportunities exist in jurisdictions like the UK and Asia that have outdated or inconsistent rules around retail product sales and principal trading; regulators will eventually harmonize standards, so early movers in compliant infrastructure will have an advantage.