Crypto firm Coinbase has announced plans to expand its Canadian operations and named Lucas Matheson, formerly a senior director at Shopify, as its new Country Director for Canada.
Coinbase’s hire comes amid increased pressure on international crypto-trading platforms operating in Canada without registration following the collapse of FTX.
Much of his Matheson’s role will focus on working with Canadian regulatory officials to register as a restricted dealer in Canada and formally enter the market.
In response to FTX’s financial fiasco, the Canadian Securities Administrators is warning investors that trading in crypto assets comes “with elevated levels of risk that may not be suitable for many investors, in particular retail investors.”
“Crypto will be one of the most opportunistic asset classes of our generation and I couldn’t be more excited to join such an incredible team on a mission to bring economic freedom to the world. Can’t wait to bring this mission to Canada and helping make Coinbase incredible for Canadians,” Matheson wrote on LinkedIn.
According to a September survey from the Ontario Securities Commission, Coinbase is the most popular crypto platform in Canada with 42 per cent of crypto holders using it. Coinbase’s market penetration is despite the fact it has not yet registered with regulators or signed a pre-registration undertaking.
The San Francisco-based digital currency exchange opened a Canadian office in 2021 and announced it was hiring for technical and recruiting roles.
At the time Grant D’Arcy, Coinbase’s VP of People Strategy & Talent, said “Canada has long been known as a hub for innovation and its high-quality workforce, and more recently for its crypto talent. We are hiring technical and recruiting roles immediately and will expand to more functions soon.”
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