CruTrade, a new online investment platform that offers wine investors a place to buy and sell fine wine, announced its launch today, promising a marketplace where enthusiasts can trade wine powered by Avalanche.
CrutTrade touts its ability to allow traders to instantly invest in bottles of wine “without moving them, reducing fees, preventing spoilage, and preserving provenance.” The platform is launching with over $60 million in tokenized inventory, comprising approximately 200,000 bottles from more than 250 producers.
CruTrade promises access to top wines, minus excessive fees, while mitigating the risk of spoilage. Bottles are stored in a temperature- and humidity-controlled facility in Beaune, France, while digital ownership transfers are on-chain.
CruTrade states that it enters the market with an advantage through its relationship with Crurate, which reportedly has tokenized more than $60 million of fine wine.
The company believes there is sufficient demand for a wine marketplace as it predicts a “reset” in how luxury goods are traded.
The fine wine secondary market is valued at $9 billion today, with expectations that it could reach $25 billion by 2030.
CrutTrade was founded by CEO Devon Ferreira. He previously served as Global Head of Digital at Oakley, and later as Chief Marketing Officer at Avalanche (Ava Labs). Ferreira also held senior leadership roles at Immutable and Disney.
John Nahas, Chief Business Officer at Ava Labs, says fine wine is a natural fit for its mission to tokenize the world’s assets, providing speed and security of transactions.
CruTrade makes its money via transaction fees which are said to be lower than auction house charges.
