Binance, hosts “Women of Vision” event at Forum Embassy Hill in Constantia, Cape Town

Binance, the leading cryptocurrency exchange with more than 260 million users globally, recently hosted the inspiring “Women of Vision” event at the stunning Forum Embassy Hill in Constantia, Cape Town.

This gathering brought together influential women from diverse industries, featuring the expertise of renowned Youth Employment Specialist Farai Ntuli as the host. Speakers included Samantha Fuller, Binance’s Head of Communications for the Middle East and Africa; Frederica Tompkins Michell, Director of Global Brand Marketing at Binance; and Yande Nomvete, Binance’s Head of Operations for South Africa, who facilitated a “Crypto Newbie Quick Workshop” alongside Esther Mukumbo.

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The event provided an invaluable opportunity for these remarkable women to network and gain insights into the dynamic world of cryptocurrency, proving that it's never too late to start—the time is now.

Frederica Tompkins Michell, the Director of Global Brand Marketing at Binance, spoke with GLAMOUR about her remarkable journey from luxury fashion to the world of cryptocurrency.

How has your extensive experience in the luxury market, including roles at Chanel and Ralph Lauren, shaped your approach to branding at Binance?

Frederica emphasised the importance of a clear brand proposition. “I owe a great deal to Binance co-founder Yi He, whose visionary leadership has profoundly influenced our brand identity, especially with our signature black and yellow colour scheme. Her foresight in establishing a strong visual identity and fostering a community-driven business model has been both brilliant and inspiring.

As Binance approaches its 8th anniversary this July, Frederica reflects, “While eight years may seem short in the grand scheme, it holds significant weight in the fast-paced crypto industry."

Having worked across the US, Europe, and now the GCC, what unique insights do you bring to Africa’s crypto ecosystem, and how do you envision its evolution regarding cultural relevance and community-building?

“I am truly impressed by the South African region, especially in terms of its crypto adoption levels, which are remarkable,” she shares.

“This area is at the forefront of industry adoption, setting a high standard for the global crypto landscape. Additionally, I am thrilled by the participation of women in the crypto space. About 68% of the region’s population holds some form of cryptocurrency, with women representing 31% of that demographic. This is an extraordinary benchmark from a global perspective!”

“We are at an exhilarating moment in Africa, particularly concerning technology, and it's inspiring to see women playing such a significant role in this evolving landscape. This is something we are incredibly excited about.” Frederica adds.

An insightful day into the dynamic world of cryptocurrency

Your campaigns at OKX were Cannes Lions-nominated. How do you envision continuing to craft award-winning stories that foster global ecosystems, drive impact at Binance, and promote storytelling?

For most people, crypto can feel fairly unrelatable and distant, and storytelling helps to bring humanity to what is otherwise just a tech business.

There are some phenomenal stories of individuals, such as our co-founder, and there are also some incredible individuals at Binance. I have the absolute honour and privilege of overseeing the community team along with a few other teams in the business.

They are such impressive people, and their stories are phenomenal. Some of them have come from very little, have learned so much, and not only advanced themselves from a financial perspective but from a global relationships perspective and so forth.

Frederica Tompkins Michell with Farai Ntuli at the Binance, International Women's Month event

Yande Nomvete, Operations Manager - South Africa for Binance shares her thoughts on the event and empowering more women in the crypto space.

Congratulations on a successful event, how do you feel about how it turned out?

This was our third Women’s Day Event hosted in Cape Town, and I feel so inspired! The attendance and the turnout have probably tripled or quadrupled since the first event, which really shows the growth and development of how women are interested and want to learn more about the crypto space.

I'm also super excited to get back to work and see how we can impart more knowledge to women and equip them with all of the information they need to get involved in this exciting industry.

How do you perceive the current landscape of inclusion and diversity within the crypto and blockchain industry, and what role is Binance playing in empowering more women in this space, especially in South Africa?

The current landscape when it comes to inclusion and diversity is growing, and there's always more to be done.

What is great about the crypto industry is our focus on community and allowing people's voices to be heard. When we get feedback about us not being inclusive enough or where we could do better, we take that feedback and try to apply it as much as we possibly can.

There are a lot of women in leadership positions at Binance such as our co-founder, which just shows the importance of diversity at a leadership level.

Farai Ntuli, Yande Nomvete, The Operations Manager for South Africa and Esther Mukumbo

And by virtue, it's important that women like myself also want to get other women involved. Not to say they need to come and join the team, but by being more active and involved and curious about the crypto space, which is why we have events like these.

Sub-Saharan Africa is an important region for us at Binance, and it's going to be the most important continent in the next few years…the majority of the world's population is going to come from this continent.

Reflecting on your journey from a Senior Product Operations Analyst to an Operations Manager at Binance, what pivotal experiences have shaped your approach, and what advice would you offer to women aspiring to elevate their careers in tech and crypto?

My experience of being a woman in a mainly male-dominated industry and struggling to at times find my voice as not only the only woman but a black woman. It was a process of becoming comfortable with voicing out my opinions and being confident in my thought processes and my knowledge.This has been pivotal and quite a journey in my career.

I've been in this space for seven years now, and I’m cognizant that a lot of people don't even know what it is.

Understanding what people's hesitations are and thinking about how we are going to address them is a pivotal experience that I'm currently embarking on, and it's been eye-opening, challenging my thoughts and ideas, being exposed to other people's experiences and then crafting that into what our strategy in South Africa has been pivotal and still is quite pivotal to my journey.

An attentive group of Binance guests at the " Women of Vision" event

How is Binance leveraging digital assets to bridge the financial gap for women in South Africa, and what additional measures do you believe could enhance gender-inclusive financial access?

This is something we're invested in, and we've done a lot over the years. For example, for our IWD event, we collaborated with the Yes We Can Foundation, a non-profit company that empowers women through business skills training. This demonstrates our commitment to empowering women, particularly, women from economically disadvantaged backgrounds. .

We also partner with women in tech where we offer scholarships to women in South Africa, Brazil, as well as other countries in Africa, empowering women with skills and resources on how to enter the tech space and to help develop their presence in tech.