LONDON, UK (May 22, 2025) — CruTrade, the blockchain-powered platform designed to simplify and secure how collectors acquire and exchange fine wine and spirits, today announced its public launch on June 25th. Built on Avalanche, CruTrade aims to fix a broken market worth more than $30 billion by allowing collectors to seamlessly transfer ownership of rare and collectible wines and spirits without compromising authenticity, provenance, or producer interests.

Traditional channels make it difficult for collectors to responsibly part with or acquire rare wines. Bottles are often mishandled, fees are excessive, and producers are left out entirely. Worse still, studies estimate that as many as one in five bottles in private collections are compromised—often due to improper storage or transit conditions. On CruTrade, wines remain stationary in temperature-controlled storage while ownership is transferred digitally using blockchain and RFID (Radio-Frequency Identification). Each transaction is instant, secure, and transparent—and every bottle’s integrity is preserved.

"CruTrade puts provenance first and removes friction for collectors, while also bringing producers into the value loop and giving them direct access to Web3, where 70% of users are under 40 years old," said Devon Ferreira, Co-Founder & CEO of CruTrade. Ferreira brings deep experience at the intersection of blockchain, consumer experience, and digital infrastructure. He is a former Chief Marketing Officer for multiple leading blockchains and a trusted advisor in the space. He also led global e-commerce and innovation at Oakley and pioneered item-level RFID tracking for luxury goods earlier in his career.

At launch, CruTrade offers exclusive access to the world's largest single repository of tokenized fine wine through its strategic relationship with Crurated, the global leader in this category, giving the platform unmatched scale and credibility at launch.

"We’re pleased to see solutions like CruTrade emerge to serve the evolving needs of collectors," said Alfonso de Gaetano, Founder & CEO of Crurated. "Collectors have long needed a trusted way to enjoy the world’s finest wines—whether at home or in restaurants—with full confidence in provenance. CruTrade delivers that assurance and makes it easier for bottles to be enjoyed, not just stored. It also opens new opportunities for our producers by expanding their reach to younger, digital natives eager for access to exceptional wines."

"To deliver on this promise, CruTrade needs infrastructure that is fast, reliable, and ready for real-world business," added Ferreira. "Avalanche delivers all of that—and gives us the technical flexibility and confidence to scale globally without compromising performance or user experience."

CruTrade’s ambitions extend far beyond its initial offering. The company is expanding its perfect provenance service to bonded warehouses around the world, enabling collectors globally to unlock liquidity from bottles held in professional storage. Industry analysts estimate that close to $32 billion in collectible wine will change hands this year through private transactions, specialist platforms, and professional brokers—yet much of it remains fragmented, opaque, and poorly preserved. CruTrade aims to change that. 

The platform is also developing a service for the hospitality sector. It will allow restaurants to offer world-class wines directly from the platform via venue-branded digital menus—eliminating the need to tie up working capital in inventory, while expanding access to rare wines for their guests. The global restaurant wine market is estimated at more than $40 billion annually, and CruTrade's model offers a new way for venues to deliver premium experiences without the overhead and risk of managing deep cellars.

"Fine wine represents a perfect asset class and use case for blockchain technology," said John Nahas, Chief Business Officer at Ava Labs. "We're excited to welcome CruTrade to the Avalanche ecosystem. Their access to fine wine with perfect provenance, combined with our high-performance blockchain, creates an unmatched experience for collectors and consumers worldwide. "

About CruTrade

‍CruTrade is the world’s premier platform for accessing the largest repository of tokenized fine wine, offering direct ownership transfers with guaranteed provenance. It provides access to the most sought-after vintages for collectors around the world, all while preserving bottle integrity through stationary, temperature-controlled storage. Built on blockchain and powered by RFID, CruTrade delivers full transparency throughout a wine’s journey and shortens the path from winemaker to wine lover. Designed with the collector in mind, it combines low fees with authenticity assurance and enables producers to remain connected to the life of their wines beyond initial release. For more information visit https://crutrade.io

About Avalanche

‍Avalanche® is the fastest, most reliable smart contracts platform in the world. Its revolutionary consensus protocol and novel L1s enable Web3 developers to easily launch highly scalable solutions. Deploy on the EVM, or use your own custom VM. Build anything you want, any way you want, on the eco-friendly blockchain designed for Web3 devs. Avalanche® is an open-source platform for launching decentralized finance applications and enterprise blockchain deployments in one interoperable, highly scalable ecosystem. Avalanche uses Proof-of-Stake, which allows tens of thousands of validators to have a first-hand say in the system while consuming minimal energy. For more information, visit https://www.avax.network.

Media Contacts

‍Kimberly Gordon
kimberly@crutrade.io

Julia Shelby
julia.shelby@avalabs.org