All Points South for crypto-supported festivals

“Hedge Fund Festivals Kill Electronic Music” might not be the catchiest title for an EP, but it’s hard to argue with the sentiment.

Artists Blawan and The Analogue Cops unfortunately never responded to my request for an interview about the financialization of fandom in 2018. And they probably weren't there on SaturdayAll points to the east– a London day party organized by US conglomerate Anschutz Entertainment Group and sponsored this year by crypto platform Luno.

Music fans who don't already know might be disappointed to learn that five days later, Anschutz Corporation (which owns AEG, which also operates Coachella) handed over $75,000 to the Republican Attorneys General AssociationRoe v. calfwas overturned, according to Rolling Stone.

RAGA was in campaign mode even on the day of her triumph, calling for donations on June 24 to “fight the Democrats’ pro-abortion agenda.” The Anschutz Corporation told Rolling Stone that owner Philip Anschutz "believes in a woman's right to choose and does not support reversing Roe."

Either way, AEG seems to like crypto almost as much as the Republican Party, to which it has donated sporadically since 2014. In November, the Staples Center in Los Angeles, owned and operated by AEG, was renamed Crypto.com Arena.

Luno's sponsorship of All Points East suggests that the crypto industry's advertising blitzkrieg has not yet died a complete death. Here Luno has form. The Barry Silbert-backed platform was forced last year to change “misleading” posters displayed in London with the slogan “If you see Bitcoin on the subway, it’s time to buy.”

City AMReaders are now encouraged to become “Bitcoin Pioneers” almost daily by Silbert’s Digital Currency Group. “Thanks to the support of Luno,” you will receive the token worth £500 “to share with beginners [and help] them get started.”

Luno takes its responsibility towards its customers very seriously. In late July, the group wrote in a blog post that "while no one can predict where the market will go next, the only thing investors can do is use a trusted crypto platform":

The key is to ensure that their funds actually exist and are accounted for. This is why at Luno we publish our Proof of Reserves report every quarter.

Luno partnered with Mazars, a leading international accounting, tax and advisory firm, to conduct the proof of reserves audit in the second quarter. This proof of reserve report gives you peace of mind that Luno has your cryptocurrency safely stored so you can use it at any time.

Mazars runs tests on the vast majority of these holdings to prove that the cryptocurrencies you see in your Luno wallet actually exist.

These will be the same Mazars who were lambasted by Britain's accounting regulator just last month for the "unacceptable" quality of their audits. “Peace of mind” for all indeedAll points to the eastDay trippers drunk enough to be seduced into crypto by Luno. Luno, AEG and Mazars did not respond in time for publication of this article.