Amélie Arras
Sales and marketing director at Zumo
Do you educate external audiences on crypto (e.g., clients, journalists, partners)? Who is your audience for education, and how do you approach it?
Absolutely. Educating external audiences on crypto is a critical part of our mission at Zumo, especially given the complexity and polarised perceptions surrounding the industry.
Our audience for education spans multiple segments, including consumers, partners, financial institutions, and regulators. Each of these groups has different needs and levels of understanding, so our approach to education is tailored accordingly. For consumers, it's about demystifying crypto and providing clear, practical information about how it can be used safely and effectively. For partners and institutions, we focus on the technical aspects and regulatory considerations, helping them understand how they can integrate crypto into their existing systems.
Education is also critical at the enterprise level. We regularly offer workshops, executive briefings, and participate in parliamentary hearings to ensure that key stakeholders are well-informed. Our aim is to foster a balanced understanding of crypto, highlighting both the opportunities and the risks.
Has the market changed in terms of crypto knowledge in the past years? What do you think caused this change?
The market has evolved significantly in terms of crypto knowledge over the past few years. In 2017, when I entered the space, awareness was relatively low. Today, that awareness has surged, with 91% of UK adults now aware of cryptoassets, up from 78% in 2021. This increase is due in large part to media coverage of price fluctuations and the impact of the pandemic, which pushed crypto into the mainstream as an alternative investment.
It shows up in our own polling as well. According to a survey we ran together with FocalData pre-election, more than a third of young adults believe the growth of the crypto sector should be a key consideration for politicians, with four in ten considering it vital for the UK’s economic growth prospects. Today’s consumers want crypto in the public debate and there’s a real engagement there that simply didn’t exist before.
With 38% of UK 18-24 year-olds having invested in cryptocurrencies themselves, and 40% who know friends and family who hold crypto, we’re at a new stage of crypto awareness, especially among the younger demographics.
What channels and tools do you use? Is there something that you think should be done differently in regard to crypto education on a more general level, meaning the sector as a whole?
Our approach to marketing and education has evolved alongside our business model. Increasingly, we see that consumers are just as comfortable buying crypto through their trusted financial providers. So we’ve pivoted from targeting consumers directly to focusing on providing infrastructure for financial institutions. This shift has meant that our channels are now more aligned with those of a B2B enterprise SaaS platform.
Still, education remains a cornerstone of our strategy, including workshops, executive briefings, and active participation in regulatory discussions.
Given crypto’s volatility and associated risks, particularly for younger generations, I strongly believe that financial education should start much earlier, ideally with a financial wellness curriculum in schools. While the fintech sector has done a lot to educate consumers, the most impactful change would be to embed financial literacy, including crypto education, into the school system. I’ve advocated for this during my appearances before the House of Lords, and I continue to believe that early education is key to ensuring a financially literate and responsible population.
