European immigration of cryptocurrency to Switzerland accelerates
In the face of new regulations deemed too restrictive, the European crypto industry – French in particular – is accelerating its exit. Switzerland positions itself as a land of welcome. French ship preparing to settle in Neuchâtel.
Has Startup Nation lost ground? Aware of the economic opportunities that a harmful European climate presents to Switzerland, associations and economic promotions are luring French crypto entrepreneurs into disarray.
Klaus Wedevelt / Getty Images
He’s a rising star in the French tech and cryptocurrency scene coming to French-speaking Switzerland. Sebastian Gospelo, President of “Green” Bitcoin Mining BigBlock Datacenter It was Wednesday in Neuchâtel with the representative of the economic promotion to open an account in the cantonal bank BCN. The series of fundraising campaigns – 200 million targets in six months, to become one of the major global players in mining – began in Paris in February. So it will most likely end up in Switzerland, where his new company BBZ should be registered in a few weeks. A pinch in heart for this French technology ambassador, he is “very patriotic” by his own admission, and has committed for five years to “wear blue, white and red on the international stage”.
Sebastian Gospelo (right), with the brother of the President of the Republic of El Salvador, Ibragim Bukele. The French businessman, a longtime promoter of the French tech scene, is moving to Neuchâtel.
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“The atmosphere has become very unfavorable,” laments the person who was recently expelled by his French bank overnight. “There’s nothing to blame me for, just too many transitions, very visual. Double page format reverberationthe newspaper the banker reads, was the trigger.” Although he set up a bank in France, the one who advises several governments – including El Salvador where he has set up high-profile residency – made his decision: move to Switzerland. Now he adds regulatory uncertainty To the banking uncertainty In France, practically everyone is currently thinking about the possibility of leaving.
Anger in Europe over regulatory uncertainty
Fears of sanctions circumvention and Russian rhetoric about money laundering by authorities, which tightened the regulatory noose around the European crypto industry, has set the powder on fire. Two weeks ago, this was a very problematic article in the new regulations Mica (Crypto-asset markets) – discussed in Brussels – sparking fears of the worst. The proposal provided for a very strong restriction – a de facto ban – on the use of so-called Proof of cryptocurrencies – including bitcoin and ether – directly threatening three-quarters of the industry’s activity.
Then the big French players doubled their positions in the media and on the networks. In a post entitleddefending financial freedom”, Rhino Arbitrage He warned of the “disappearance of the innovative and booming economy of digital assets” in Europe.
The article was finally rejected in the commission, but the new version of the MICA was not enough to reassure the representatives. This week, it is an amendment to European regulations on the transfer of funds – the rule of travel – including cryptocurrency, which has been seen as a risk to the competitiveness of European companies against their American and Asian competitors. It does not pass the restriction of keeping a private wallet and controlling the origin of all crypto transactions managed by brokers (regardless of amounts). Spokesperson for the French crypto scene, Alexandre Stachenko, founder of Blockchain Partner and Head of Cryptography at KPMG on Twitter.
The atmosphere is electric between MEP Aurore Lalucq, an advocate of a strict framework for cryptocurrency, and industry players. The socialist has been under the ire of the French crypto space for several weeks as they accuse each other.
At the end of Thursday afternoon, the first package of measures, including repressive ones against private users’ wallets, crossed the ramp in the commission in the European Parliament. Others will follow. In the evening, the reactions were not long in coming.
Switzerland is more welcoming than ever
Alexander Stachenko asserts that in this volatile context, “the exit of European companies, especially French, will accelerate,” and he mentions El Salvador or Switzerland as potential destinations. An acceleration in the mass immigration that Switzerland is preparing for. Alexis Russell, Operations Manager at syllabus A bitcoin pioneer in Neuchâtel, he says he regularly receives “requests for information to settle here. This movement is already underway and is likely to grow in the future.”
Thus, Quentin de Beuchesen, founder ofprivate In Paris, a blockchain solution for tracking logistics, set up in October 2021 at Neuchâtel Beyond Blockchain. Structure for the development of new crypto projects. He is now setting up a subsidiary of Ownest in Switzerland to manage crypto assets. “In France, we already had a huge banking problem, with the hypothetical impossibility of getting cryptocurrencies into an account and exorbitant taxes. Now comes the regulatory uncertainty.” He is approaching Friends in Neuchâtel and is currently looking for a place to stay with his family in the Lake Geneva region.
Switzerland Raised the French Cryptocurrency Ecosystem
Aware of the economic opportunities that a harmful European climate presents to Switzerland, associations and economic promotions are luring French crypto entrepreneurs into disarray. As evidence, the organization – on the sidelines Blockchain Week Summit which will be held in Paris on April 12 and 13, Happened at the Swiss Embassy in Paris, titled “Switzerland, the perfect place to develop your own blockchain and crypto projects.” It was co-organized by the Swiss International Foundation, as well asEmi Lorincz, President of the Crypto Valley Associationhe will see crypto-entrepreneurs stepping in in Switzerland, including a Frenchman who came to set up his company in Geneva.
The event, organized at the Swiss Embassy in Paris on April 12, aims to attract French crypto companies. Three cryptocurrency entrepreneurs will praise Switzerland’s allure.
Among the messages Amy Lorenz would like to convey during her speech was the authorities’ “pragmatic and open-minded” stance, which makes Switzerland a “natural choice” for developing projects around blockchain, DLTs, and “global applications in a token economy.” Emi Lorincz highlights a “stable regulatory framework” and the strength of the communities, particularly in Zurich, Zug and Neuchâtel.
Dazzling detail, Emi Lorincz works for the French unicorn Ledger, which stands for the French crypto scene, supporting the event. The director of the Cryptovalley Association specifies that “Ledger is looking to attract talent,” and that in the event of a larger exodus, he would be “happy to welcome them to our offices in Zurich.”
Joan Blancade An economic and investigative journalist at Bilan, he is a critical observer of the Swiss and global tech scene. It is concerned with the fundamental trends that are reshaping the economy and society.
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