Binance Blockchain Week Paris — A Recap of Our Biggest Event To Date
Last week, over 5,000 people gathered at Palais des Congrès de Paris to enjoy the three-day, innovation-packed conference, Binance Blockchain Week! Our agenda featured panels from key stakeholders from both inside and outside the blockchain community, who shared their thoughts on Web3 culture, crypto regulation, and more.
Let’s recap what took place over the course of the three-day conference.
Day 1: ‘Frameworks & Foundations’ and ‘Build Bold’
The first theme of day one of the conference was ‘Frameworks and Foundations’ and was dedicated to discussing France as the crypto hub of Europe, and government regulation on crypto. The theme also covered how Web3 could benefit users globally and empower various charitable causes.
The morning started with a fireside chat between CZ and the French Minister for Digital Transition and Telecommunications, Jean-Noël Barrot. The two discussed the role of France in the digital and blockchain revolution of Europe, as well as the significant role of the French government has played in the upcoming MiCA regulation.
Barrot said, “The transition from Web2 to Web3 will unleash lots of opportunities for sharing, collaboration, and creativity in general. That’s why the French government and President Macron strongly support the Web3 ecosystem”.
The French Example was another interesting discussion on the actions the country has taken to welcome blockchain businesses, as well as its unique position on advocacy for and adoption of Web3.
‘Build Bold’ was the second theme of day one, exploring how Web3 communities were built and how they benefited projects and teams globally. A key topic in these discussions was education, with the lack of knowledge and skills to leverage the industry having been one of the major barriers to adoption.
As part of our efforts to increase crypto literacy across various countries, a big part of Binance Blockchain Week Paris was dedicated to workshops where visitors learnt about various blockchain topics, such as:
The Metaverse
Scaling the BNB Chain Ecosystem
Binance Academy and Learn & Earn Program
Building an Effective PR and Marketing Campaign
Determining Retail Market Sentiment
Day 2: ‘Web3 Culture Convergence’ and ‘A Web3-Powered World’
On the second day of the conference, we dove deeper into understanding the relationship between culture and Web3, as well as what to expect from a blockchain-powered world. We spoke about how Web3 has influenced and created new opportunities in fashion, sports, art, and beyond.
The morning started with a chat with retired NBA player Tony Parker, who shared his insights on how NFTs affect big sports. He also spoke about his project with French pop artist Julien Durix and Like a Brush NFT’s project lead Alan Terrisse.
Also featured was Olympic medalist and international tennis champion Maria Sharapova, who discussed how the world of Web 3 and sports have collided, and referenced her experience owning personal projects in the space.
An advocate for women in crypto, Sharapova said, “As a woman, I hope that I can build a bridge for people who are intimidated by the space. I hope that by leading by example and exposing myself to it, and by sharing my failures and my victories with them, I can give them an opportunity and a voice to lead, to try to keep going.”
Aside from sports and art, the first part of day two was also dedicated to fashion, with Elise Yoshida of Chrisitian Louboutin and Benjamin Eymere from AMTD Group giving us their insights into where Web3 currently stood in the world of high-end fashion, as well as where they envisioned it would be in 10 years.
The morning also included a showcase of five outstanding BNB Chain projects by their co-founders and creators.
The theme for the second half of day two was ‘A Web3-Powered World’, where our panelists spoke about regenerative finance, decentralized science, and DeFi. The discussions touched on the relationship between traditional and decentralized finance, as well as how both have been adapting to the new tools and technologies brought about by Web3.
We discussed what blockchain-related technologies could emerge in the future, and the current gaps in different areas. While speaking about the power of blockchain in uplifting communities, Andrei Kirilenko, Professor of Finance at Cambridge Judge Business School, said: “Traditional institutions are not designed to help people who have left Ukraine with a backpack, two kids, and a cat. These people have to cross borders and they have nothing — their biggest assets were their real estate and their family. Their money's gone, their assets are gone.”
Alongside the main stage panels, day two included multiple workshops, kicking off with an introduction to tokenomics, a deep dive into BNB liquid staking, and a presentation by Trust Wallet.
The day ended with a fun AMA with CZ, where Binancians got to ask our CEO questions about his views on the blockchain industry’s evolution, SAFU, and even where to get a pair of Binance socks. CZ closed the conference by reminding the crowd that the blockchain revolution was just beginning and that there were “so many real-world applications for NFTs and the Metaverse” that had “yet to come to life”.
Day 3: The Binance Super Meet-up
With the two-day conference over, the final day of Binance Blockchain Week Paris featured discussions led by the Binance team, Web3 influencers and leaders, and Binance Angels.
We spoke about the importance of the Binance Angels Program, and how our ‘guardian angels’ work relentlessly to help new users in their communities understand our platform. We then discussed the music industry’s foray into Web3 with Anne Cirbon, CEO of Louve. To top it all off, there were live performances from French breakdance team Enjoy Production, as well as musical artist the Nice Astronaut, who had written a rap song about Binance.
The day ended with an impassioned closing keynote address from He Yi, Binance’s CMO and Co-Founder, who highlighted the importance of our users’ safety and our commitment to providing them with a fair and trustworthy platform.
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