Binance, one of the world’s largest digital asset platforms, has created a cell in the B:HIVE.
But if you go to Level Four to take a peek, you would be excused for doing a double-take. Ben Rose, Binance’s first general manager for New Zealand, used to be in the hive at CodeHQ as CCO.
A Londoner by birth, Ben came to New Zealand 19 years ago to shoot a TVC for Tourism New Zealand. He loved it so much he stayed converting from advertising to sales and marketing and into the digital world.
Now he’s setting up the local entity for Binance, wading through registration as a financial service provider, rules for external disputes resolution, reporting to Police on anything suspicious and becoming an anti-money laundering reporting entity (AML).
There are people, including journalists, who are dark on cryptocurrency ( look at all the losses they wail…) and other digital transactions like NFTs, staking (crypto savings accounts) and wallets.
But Ben says 10% of New Zealanders have already had their first foray into the crypto world. And with the global average at 15% per capita, there is plenty of room for growth here.
Binance’ global platform has grown from launch in 2017 to, as of mid-October, handling US$100 billion trading a day and 1.8 billion transactions per second.
In New Zealand, Binance’s BNB coin is already on the list of crypto in TV money reports here.
How can B:HIVERS convert to “Binancians”? Ben says it is important to educate yourself – to do your homework. An online Binance Academy covers 101 in crypto lessons through to the complex. And he might be talked into doing a session if enough people want to bring their lunch and have a listen.
But will he get Binance’s billionaire co-founder CZ (Changpeng Zhao) to visit from Singapore? He’s working on it… Now that would create a real buzz.