As the adoption of digital assets continues to rise globally, prominent cryptocurrency exchange OKX has recently announced plans to establish operations in France, with a goal of hiring 100 full-time employees over the next three years. In line with this expansion, OKX has applied for registration as a Digital Asset Service Provider (DASP) in the country that would allow it to provide digital asset custody and operate a crypto trading platform. France is already home to more than 70 approved DASPs, including notable names such as Bitstamp, Societe Generale Forge, and Luno’s French division.
OKX’s decision to set up shop in France follows the footsteps of Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, which secured a French DASP license in May 2022. By September 2022, the company had already hired 150 people for its Paris operations. OKX now faces a registration process that may last up to six months before it can commence operations in the country.
In other crypto hiring news, Matter Labs, the creator of layer-2 scaling solution zkSync, has recently expanded its talent pool by hiring former Activision Blizzard executive Michael Lee as its Senior Vice President of Growth. Lee has vast experience managing a massive network of over 400 million players for popular games Call of Duty, Overwatch, and World of Warcraft. His new job at Matter Labs will involve transforming zkSync into a gaming platform. This move signifies the growing significance of Web3 gaming, which has been a dominant force in the hiring space this week.
Apart from these developments, Hong Kong’s newly-launched crypto exchange, Gate.HK, has hired former BNP-Paribas director Kevin Lee as its CEO. Hong Kong has experienced a surge in crypto exchange entrants since allowing them to operate within its borders. Moreover, the Federal Reserve has posted a job opening on LinkedIn for a “Senior Financial Institution Policy Analyst” responsible for tracking and assessing “novel fintech activities” related to “crypto-assets” and “distributed ledger technology.” It is evident that the demand for experienced professionals in the expanding world of blockchain and cryptocurrency is increasing.
In conclusion, the expansion plans of prominent crypto exchanges like OKX and the continuous influx of experienced professionals into the blockchain technology space signal a promising future for digital assets. While skeptics question the long-term implications, the continuous growth of crypto adoption and the increasing demand for skilled professionals in the industry cannot be ignored.
Source: Blockworks
