Think of cryptocurrencies and, likely, and the image that springs to mind is likely of an Elon Musk-aping, permanently online, crypto bro likely harbouring the sort of opinions that cause arguments over Christmas dinner.
However, Binance’s chief marketing officer, Rachel Conlan believes that this characterisation is out of touch with the reality of the industry. Instead, she believes that the cryptocurrency sector provides the perfect environment for women to get ahead in tech—and fast.
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“If you look at our industry, it has definitely been largely built and designed by men. But this is the same of any industry,” she told B&T as part of an exclusive chat last month.
Prior to joining Binance a little over 18 months ago, having spent the majority of her career working agency-side in various roles at Havas around the world.
“In advertising, sports and entertainment and now in crypto, I’ve always been asked ‘Why is there such a diversity issue?’ I would argue it’s changing faster in crypto and blockchain for a couple of reasons,” she said.
“First, the barriers to entry aren’t as high as they are even in meia or B2B tech as they are in crypto. In fact, I think we’re inviting more women and more diversity. Second, we see more female-founded businesses and innovations, six per cent of blockchain companies are founded by women at the moment. I would think we’ll see that figure double in 2025 based on the investment strategies that many of the big labs and VCs are taking.”
Binance itself was co-founded by Changpeng Zhao and Yi He, who was once described as “crypto’s most powerful woman” by Bloomberg. The company’s board is 35 per cent female and its management team is 30 per cent female, including Conlan.
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However, Conlan did say that the business’ product team “leans more male” but that this was a result of skill sets and training. Conlan’s marketing team, by contrast, is 51 per cent female.
“Women are attracted to the space because of the flexibility. I’ve got a three-year-old and I came into Crypto pregnant but there’s a huge opportunity because you work remotely, design your own hours and those are really attractive to women who have other responsibilities,” she explained.
“The more we bring in women and educate [the market] the more women will become involved, because it’s all word of mouth. You’ve got a female CEO at Solana, the CEO of our competitor Bitget is female, COO of ByBit is female. There are a lot of very senior women that are guiding the agenda than you would see in other tech companies.”
Binance operates a 100 per cent remote workforce. Conlan, for instance, is based out of the UAE, which makes her travel schedule slightly more forgiving.
With the sector still being incredibly new and fast-moving, it does attract a certain kind of person—those willing to move quickly.
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“We’re in such an early stage,” said Conlan.
“It isn’t about your black book and your connections. It’s obviously an advantage but it’s more about your passion, ability to get involved and affect change.”
Conlan said that the business hires for culture fit first, with a focus on passion and ability to “get their hands dirty”. The business also operates with a flatter hierarchy than many might be used to.
Binance certainly isn’t alone in operating in this manner. within the tech sector. Atlassian, for instance, went fully remote during the pandemic and hasn’t returned to the office under and hard and fast rules.
It’s a model that has huge benefits for women and could certainly help reprogram the tech industry for good in the years to come.
