In Paris’s upscale Le Marais district, cryptocurrency hardware wallet maker Ledger has unveiled its new multi-million-euro headquarters, a nine-story architectural marvel that blends Silicon Valley innovation with French opulence. The headquarters, which opened to mark Ledger’s 10th anniversary, boasts a basketball court, fitness studio, a chic rooftop bar with panoramic views of the French capital, and interiors adorned with NFT and generative artwork.
Ledger, a French unicorn valued at $1.5 billion (€1 billion), drew inspiration for its headquarters from Apple’s futuristic Cupertino campus and the Château de Chambord, a 16th-century architectural masterpiece. “My thinking [for the building] went to what Apple did for designing hardware in Cupertino,” Ledger CEO Pascal Gauthier told Euronews Next. “The other inspiration was Château de Chambord… built as a marketing/propaganda tool to show that François I was the king.”
Designed with a striking black hardware theme contrasting with abundant natural light, the headquarters showcases Ledger’s core philosophy: a seamless connection between the physical and digital worlds. “It’s a physical location that shows what Ledger is about: hardware products that you can see and touch… a link between your physical world and digital world,” Gauthier explained.
The headquarters not only aims to be a workspace but also a global meeting hub for the crypto community. Gauthier envisions it as a place where the industry’s brightest minds can come together to innovate and collaborate.
Ledger has weathered the turbulence of the cryptocurrency market, particularly the crashes and scandals of 2022, including high-profile arrests such as Sam Bankman-Fried for fraud and Binance’s Changpeng Zhao for money laundering. Despite the challenges, the company has emerged stronger, fueled by the growing institutional embrace of Bitcoin, including backing from Wall Street heavyweights and BlackRock.
On the recent crypto resurgence, Gauthier remarked, “Crypto is where the party is right now… What the industry can do in the next ten years I think is mindblowing compared to what has happened in the past.”
Ledger’s achievements include selling over seven million hardware wallets, which the company proudly notes have never been hacked. Gauthier aspires for Ledger’s wallets to protect 10% of the world’s population within the next decade, stating, “There will be an amazing change, and Ledger will become the Apple of this world.”
The company’s leadership has also been bolstered by the addition of Tony Fadell, creator of Apple’s iPod, to its board of directors. “Tony has the experience of being at Apple… and I welcome every bit of advice that he can give to me to run the company better,” Gauthier said.
As Ledger looks to the future, its new headquarters stands as a symbol of its ambition to lead the crypto world, blending innovation, resilience, and a touch of French grandeur.
