The EBC team sat down last week with Dorian Vincileoni, Business Development Manager at Kucoin Exchange to discuss the future of crypto and the impact of the crypto winter.
What are your initiatives in Web3 so far?
The exploration of Web3 is our focus in 2022, and KuCoin aims to introduce more innovative products to lower the barriers for users to explore the Web3 space. In the past months, we have deepened the construction of the Web3 and have done a series of major things:
This April, we launched a brand new NFT Marketplace – Windvane, a one-stop platform that supports digital collections, artworks, and game consoles with functions including NFT mining, NFT marketplace, and NFT airdrop. And launched a $100 Million Creators Fund to empower the Web3 universe.
This May, we raised $150 Million in our Pre-series B funding at a $10 Billion valuation. This investment round will support our growth of decentralized trading services in the Web3 space.
This June, we launched our decentralized crypto wallet to offer our users Web3 services including a secure and easy crypto wallet that supports multi-chain aggregation and allows the users to create a decentralized account for the Web3 in seconds and send, receive, and store BTC, ETH, USDT, USDC, BNB, and more tokens in one place. Over 3 million users have joined the public beta test of the wallet and we believe it will be the getaway for millions to enter the Web3 world.
When do you believe we will see full adoption of crypto?
Crypto is still in its infancy. For widespread adoption, it requires both the continuous breakthrough of industry technology and the continuous maturity of global industry regulations, as well as better user-education. Radical change won’t happen overnight, it might take decades. As a pioneer in the industry, KuCoin is pressing on the accelerator for the process of crypto masses adoption with cutting-edge technologies and easy-to-use services. And we believe that One day, everyone will become involved with crypto.
What is the impact on KuCoin with Terra’s collapse and the current crypto winter?
As I mentioned earlier, the ongoing cryptocurrency market crash will “weed” out weak companies and investors. It will accelerate changes in the entire industry pattern, and a series of mergers and acquisitions will follow. Survival of the best is a constant law in any industry, crypto firms that will make it through from the market downturn are the ones innovating new technology.
Therefore, facing the crypto downward trend, KuCoin will adhere to the market-respecting mentality, and at the same time, focus on global talent recruitment, exchange product development, and building bridges to Web3 to improve our competitiveness and provide better services to our users. I hope these can be referenced to other players in the industry.
Have you experienced growth in trading volume in the first half of 2022 compared to the same period in 2021?
The answer is absolutely positive! In our official summary report for the first half of 2022, we shared the gratifying achievements in global user growth:
During the first half of 2022, KuCoin has gained approximately 9.75 million new registered users, a 219% increase from the first half of 2021. And Europe increased by 216%.
And for trading volume, including spot and futures trading, we have exceeded $2 trillion, an increase of 180% compared to the same period in 2021. Our daily spot volume peaked at $11 billion this May, and the top daily futures volume was close to $23 billion. Europe outperformed others in terms of the speed of growth, achieving a total volume of $481 billion with 381% growth compared with the same period last year.
Is there another milestone on the horizon after the launch of EUR fiat trading pairs?
As KuCoin’s 5th anniversary is approaching, the number of registered users surpassed 20 million, which is another milestone for us. KuCoin is growing at high speed with the support and trust of every user regardless of market conditions. And there will be more monumental moments for us to share as we continue to provide more innovative products and services around NFTs, GameFi, and Web3 to help users access the crypto world more easily.
About Kucoin
KuCoin is a global cryptocurrency exchange for numerous digital assets and cryptocurrencies. Launched in September 2017, KuCoin has grown into one of the most popular crypto exchanges and already has over 8M registered users across 207 countries and regions around the world.
Known as the “People’s Exchange”, KuCoin operates in Seychelles, providing users with 24/7 multi-language customer services. Meanwhile, KuCoin has established about 19 local communities in North America, Europe, SEA, and other regions, providing users with highly localized services.
As the home of crypto gems, KuCoin has supported over 420 projects with 800+ trading pairs. A number of projects like ICP, BOSON, AERGO, RNDR, and DAO had their primary listing on KuCoin.
In November 2018, KuCoin announced its $20 million Series A funding round from IDG Capital and Matrix Partners. In 2021, KuCoin has been rated the Best Crypto Exchanges by Forbes Advisor.
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