Crypto.com Follows Binance Into France, Invests $145M in Paris HQ

Binance isn’t the only crypto company seduced by France’s pro-business environment: today Crypto.com announced it would base its regional headquarters in Paris. 

In a Wednesday statement, the Singapore-based crypto exchange said it was investing €150 million ($145.3 million) in France. 

The cash will go towards setting up its European HQ in the capital and hiring local talent in the fields of compliance, business development and product. France’s market authority AMF last month gave Crypto.com regulatory approval, registering it as a digital asset service provider. 

Crypto.com COO Eric Anziani said the company was looking forward to “continuing to engage with stakeholders across sectors to help facilitate the new digital economy in France and providing customers a best-in-class crypto experience.”

Over 50 million people use Crypto.com’s products, according to the company’s own figures. As well as an exchange, it also offers a Visa debit card and its own token, Cronos. 

Like rival crypto exchange FTX, Crypto.com has bet big on sports marketing: Earlier this year, it announced it would be a sponsor for next month’s FIFA World Cup. And last year it signed a $100 million deal with Formula 1 racing. Crypto.com has also inked marketing deals with NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and Ultimate Fighting Championship. 

But the company’s marketing spree, including a series of highly publicized commercials starring Hollywood actor Matt Damon, has arguably worked against it. This year the company has had to make at least two major cuts to its staff. In June, it got rid of 5% of its workforce, then two months later a number of sources told Decrypt it was cutting even more staff—citing the bear market. Nevertheless, the company now appears poised to continue an aggressive expansion into Europe.

In developing a headquarters in Paris, Crypto.com is following in the steps of Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange. In May, Binance became the first major digital asset exchange to be licensed as a digital asset service provider in France. 

The move made France the first European country to allow Binance to operate within its jurisdiction. 

Binance chose France because of its “pro-business” stance: CEO Changpeng Zhao praised the country’s “pro-crypto regulations” back in April, saying the country was “very uniquely positioned to be the leader of this industry in Europe.”

Zhao said that the country’s government was “extremely knowledgeable” about crypto. His comments came after a finance ministry official said France was working to support the development of the cryptocurrency industry. 

France’s central bank last year tested crypto in a series of government bond deals in a major digital asset experiment.