Paris The Fashion Capital, Embarking on a New Web3 Feast

Paris, the Fashion Capital, Enters Web3 Feast

Author: Beosin Donny, Eaton, Dorit

Around 1920, Hemingway lived in Paris as a journalist stationed in Europe. The book “A Moveable Feast” records the author’s daily life at that time.

However, the writing of this book took place nearly forty years later. In other words, the “scene” of the feast had long disappeared, and both the author and the readers were only chasing after that past time in their memories. Regardless of whether they were the author or the readers, these memories have already become blurred and distorted through the lens of time.

All memories related to Paris have blended into a common historical memory of Paris.

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In this semi-realistic and semi-fictional work, the customs and scenes of the Paris literary circle in the 1920s unfold gradually. Those individuals who were once influential in the world of literature and art are vividly sketched with just a few strokes, forever blending with this city and this book.

And now, 100 years later, this city of Paris is embarking on a brand new feast – the Web3 encrypted feast.

Ethereum Community Conference (EthCC), a moveable encrypted feast

Recently, the most lively event in Paris is undoubtedly the Ethereum Community Conference (EthCC) held from July 17th to 20th in Paris, France. EthCC is organized by the non-profit organization Ethereum France and has been held in Paris since 2018, aiming to provide more opportunities for communication among startups and investors.

At the conference in 2020, Jerome de Tychey, the founder and chairman of Ethereum France, said, “In the next decade, our goal is to continue revitalizing the industry and establishing meaningful connections within the community. It is also worth emphasizing that we welcome the global French-speaking community to join the Ethereum ecosystem.” This year’s EthCC will be held from July 17th to 20th, and since last month, tickets for EthCC have been in high demand. The conference has been extended from three days to four days, making it the most anticipated event for Ethereum developers and the entire cryptocurrency community after EDCON Montenegro this year.

In Paris, another event worth paying attention to is the DeFi Security Summit held on July 15th. Following the successful first DeFi Security Summit held at Stanford, the second summit will take place in Paris, France.

During the two-day event, attendees will listen to world-leading DeFi security researchers, auditors, and hackers share their unique work methods. As a global leading blockchain security company, Beosin will certainly not miss this opportunity to learn about the latest trends in the industry. Beosin’s security experts have also arrived at the scene to communicate with everyone.

In the past year, there have been numerous new DeFi hacks. According to Beosin’s semi-annual report, the loss amount in the first half of this year alone reached $600 million. Preventing and resolving these attacks is not only crucial for protecting existing users, but also for the overall development of the DeFi market. We look forward to the DeFi Security Summit bringing more inspiration and innovation to the global DeFi market.

DeFi Security Summit on-site

Will Paris, the city with its own fashion label, seamlessly integrate with the Web3 world?

In a March report, Vogue Business mentioned how Paris has become the perfect fusion of the fashion industry and the Web3 world. Just a few days before the opening of Paris Fashion Week in March this year, the NFT conference NFT LianGuairis still attracted a global audience to discuss the future of fashion. The juxtaposition of NFT LianGuairis and Paris Fashion Week implies the city’s ability to attract the integration of Web3 and fashion. Paris has formed a unique position to bridge the gap between the luxury fashion industry and the technology industry, providing early interpretations of industry sentiment even in the bear market of cryptocurrencies.

At the NFT LianGuairis conference, venture capital firm A16Z hosted a dinner for industry leaders in luxury brands, NFTs, and investments. Executives from companies such as Balmain, Shopify, and Chanel attended along with Web3 founders such as Rtfkt’s LianGuaigotto and Leanne Elliott-Young. It can be seen that

Fashion brands that have frequently favored virtual art forms in recent years are still the focus of the conference. For example, Balmain teamed up with SLianGuaice Runners to launch the latest Phygital sports shoe NFT series. Meanwhile, RTFKT, a crypto fashion brand owned by Nike, announced a capsule collection with crypto hardware wallet manufacturer Ledger, including custom white Ledger Nano S Plus and Nano X, both of which will be sold in virtual form and can be exchanged for physical items.

The hot hosting of many exhibitions demonstrates Paris and its government’s support for the cryptocurrency and blockchain field. In fact, Paris has already attracted many well-known cryptocurrency companies and organizations, such as ConsenSys and Ledger. With the continuous development of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, we have reason to believe that Paris will continue to play an important role in this field.

Web3 Cryptographic Institutions “Growing” in Paris

After conducting research, Beosin found that Paris is very friendly to the crypto ecosystem, emphasizing innovation, and has already attracted several top Web3 companies to choose Paris as their headquarters:

1. Ledger Hardware Wallet

In 2014, Ledger started with manufacturing hardware wallets and launched a series of products such as Ledger Nano. They also introduced the Ledger Live app, which provides services such as buying, selling, transferring, and lending for users. In 2021, Ledger completed a Series C funding round with a valuation of $1.4 billion and raised an additional $108 million for the Series C funding round this year, with participation from institutions such as 10T, Cathay Innovation, and DCG.

2. Flowdesk

Flowdesk was founded in 2020 and is registered with the French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) and the Prudential Supervision and Resolution Authority (ACPR). It mainly provides market-making services for cryptocurrency exchanges and DeFi projects, and has served more than 85 exchanges. In addition, Flowdesk also offers services such as digital asset management, brokerage, and custody. Flowdesk completed a $30 million Series A funding round in 2022, with participation from institutions and angel investors such as Coinbase, Ledger, Eurazeo, Aglaé Ventures, ISAI, Speedinvest, and Fabric.vc.

3. Kaiko

Kaiko was founded in 2014 and provides market data, portfolio solutions, rates and indices, pricing services, DeFi data, and global coverage of over 95% of digital asset trading volumes for institutional companies, DeFi, and Web3 enterprises. Its clients and partners include Deutsche Boerse, ICE Global Network, Messari, and LianGuaixos. In 2021, Kaiko completed a $24 million Series A funding round, led by Anthemis and Underscore. In June 2022, Kaiko completed a $53 million Series B funding round, led by Eight Roads, with participation from French venture capital firms Revaia, Alven, Point Nine, Anthemis, and Underscore.

4. ACINQ

ACINQ was founded in 2014 and focuses on Eclair Lightning Network deployment and mobile wallet applications, developing Lightning Network payment API services for merchants. In 2015, ACINQ started researching the Bitcoin Lightning Network and in 2017, they implemented their own Lightning Network protocol – Eclair, and launched the corresponding Lightning Network wallet. In 2019, ACINQ completed an $8 million Series A funding round, led by Idinvest LianGuairtners, with participation from venture capital firm Serena and the French public investment bank Bpifrance. Subsequently, ACINQ launched its second-generation Lightning Network self-custody wallet, Phoenix, to make it more convenient for users to make payments using the Lightning Network.

In addition to the above-mentioned companies, there are also Web3 project teams in Paris, such as Morpho Labs, Aleph.im, Pianity, and LianGuairaSwap.

Regulatory Policies and Future in Paris

A crypto-friendly city can be defined as one that actively creates a legal framework for the flourishing of cryptocurrencies, while enhancing consumer confidence and reducing fraud risks. While many countries are scrambling to better adapt to the rapidly evolving decentralized financial world, France has been an early leader.

In April 2019, the French National Assembly passed a law called LianGuaiCTE (Action Plan for Business Growth and Transformation) aimed at boosting the French economy. This law includes a chapter on digital assets, which establishes a legal framework for cryptocurrency service providers and initial token offerings. The key points of this framework include:

1. The French Financial Markets Authority (AMF) exercises regulatory responsibility for cryptocurrencies.

2. If the initiator of an ICO project meets specific conditions, they can apply to the AMF for issuance approval.

3. Regulated issuers of cryptocurrencies, trading platforms, custodians, and investors must pay taxes on the profits they derive from cryptocurrencies.

4. Two types of funds can invest in digital assets: professional cryptocurrency investment funds and professional private equity investment funds.

Clearer regulatory policies provide a legal basis, which will help to prosper France’s cryptocurrency industry and economic employment. The introduction of this regulatory framework demonstrates the French government’s relatively open attitude towards blockchain and the cryptocurrency industry.

In May of this year, the European Union issued the Markets in Crypto-assets Regulation (MiCA) and published it in the Official Journal of the European Union (OJEU) on June 9. This will create a unified virtual asset market covering 500 million consumers and 27 EU member states. After an 18-month transition period, MiCA will officially take effect on December 30, 2024.

MiCA is part of the European Union’s Digital Finance Strategy, which will unify the following rules among EU member states: transparency and disclosure requirements for the issuance and trading access of cryptocurrencies; authorization and regulation of cryptocurrency service providers and issuers; operation, organization, and governance rules for asset-referenced tokens, electronic-money tokens, and other cryptocurrency service providers; consumer protection rules for cryptocurrencies; measures to prevent market abuse and ensure the integrity of the cryptocurrency market. In general, MiCA mainly regulates:

Various types of cryptocurrencies, including e-money tokens, asset-referenced tokens, and other tokens; (2) Various types of cryptocurrency services and service providers, including wallet custody services, deposit and withdrawal services, exchange services, asset management services, investment advisory services, etc.

As one of the few countries in Europe to regulate cryptocurrencies before the EU’s MiCA regulations, France has stated that it will provide a fast track for cryptocurrency companies registered in France to comply with stricter MiCA rules, including stricter governance, consumer protection, and financial stability rules. According to MiCA regulations, companies already registered in France will have an additional 18 months to comply with stricter MiCA rules.

While actively promoting the development of virtual asset businesses, France has always insisted on strict regulation of related activities to ensure the safety of consumers and the market.

Recently, the Paris Prosecutor’s Office confirmed that Binance’s French subsidiary is under investigation by local authorities for allegedly providing “illegal” digital asset services and engaging in “serious money laundering activities.” However, Binance’s founder and CEO, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), stated on Twitter, “In France, sudden on-site visits to regulated companies are routine. Binance France is fully cooperating with the investigation. Binance is not the only cryptocurrency company being inspected. This has also happened to other well-known cryptocurrency companies in Paris.”

Obviously, although the French government supports investment and trading activities in cryptocurrencies, the regulation of the virtual asset market is still very strict.

Final Thoughts

Among the countless fictional or non-fictional works about Paris in history, “The Moveable Feast” is one of the most famous. The dedication on its title page – “If you are lucky enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest of your life, it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast” – has become a “cultural emblem” of Paris and is widely recited.

Now, as cryptocurrency becomes a new “label” for Paris, what kind of transformation and innovation will this city undergo? Let’s wait and see.

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