Figment Expands into Middle East With Key Hire, Amid Strategic Partnership and Rising Institutional Demand - Middle East Business News and Information
As part of this expansion, Figment has appointed Christoph Richter as its first Head of Business Development in the Middle East and announced a key partnership with UAE-based custody provider Tungsten, a trusted name in institutional digital asset services. This collaboration leverages Tungsten's well-established industry position and existing licensing within the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), enabling them to offer enhanced, non-custodial staking options to clients via Figment's infrastructure.
The move marks a major step in expanding compliant staking access across the UAE and the broader MENA region and Christoph will be Figment's first on-the-ground hire in the region.
'Staking can be understood as earning the risk-free rate on proof-of-stake networks like ETH and SOL,' said Christoph Richter. 'With inflation beating rewards and rising institutional digital asset allocations, staking is becoming a core strategy
Figment's formal entry into the region is driven by growing demand for compliant, reward-generating solutions aligned with long-term digital asset investment strategies.
'The Middle East is uniquely positioned to benefit from institutional staking,' said Eva Lawrence, Figment's Head of EMEA & Regional MD. 'With Christoph's deep background in traditional finance and digital assets, he's perfectly placed to lead our growth in this high-potential market.'
Christoph will lead business development and strategic partnerships, reporting to Eva Lawrence, the Head of EMEA. He brings nearly two decades of TradFi derivatives experience, including senior roles at JP Morgan, Barclays, BNP Paribas, and UBS. In his most recent TradFi
role, he led derivative solutions for Southern Europe and DACH at MUFG. Since entering the digital asset industry in 2017, he has advised top-tier firms and co-founded the proprietary BTC & ETH trading venture Vol Capital, building market neutral quantitative investment strategies.
Christoph brings a wealth of experience of working on major infrastructure Public Private Partnerships transactions across the Middle East, particularly in Saudi, building strong ties to the region's major players and capital markets. Now based in the UAE and fluent in five languages, he brings a truly global perspective to Figment's regional growth.
This move builds on Figment's global expansion across EMEA, the Americas, and APAC, reflecting increased institutional demand for secure and regulatory-aligned staking solutions and cementing Figment's leadership as the most trusted institutional staking provider. Christoph's appointment and the partnership with Tungsten underscore Figment's commitment to investing in local leadership and strategic infrastructure tailored to the needs of the region. About Figment:
Figment is the leading independent provider of staking infrastructure. Figment provides the complete staking solution for over 700 institutional clients, including asset managers, exchanges, wallets, foundations, custodians, and large token holders, to earn rewards on their digital assets. On Ethereum, Figment is the largest non-custodial staking provider of staked ETH. Institutional staking services from Figment include seamless point-and-click staking, portfolio reward tracking, API integrations, audited infrastructure, and slashing protection. This all leads Figment's mission to support the adoption, growth, and long-term success of the digital asset ecosystem.
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