The cryptocurrency company chaired by former UK chancellor Lord Philip Hammond has apologised for an event at which guests were served sushi from the bodies of scantily clad models and said it would launch an internal review.
Copper, which stores digital assets for customers, said the story about the gathering earlier in March had been “embarrassing”.
The UK group hosted a party at the five-star Mandrake hotel in central London at which two people who appeared to be wearing thin bodysuits lay on a long table with plates of sushi on their bodies, the Financial Times revealed this week.
“We did not get this right,” Copper said. “We recognise that certain aspects of the event have caused offence and do not reflect Copper’s corporate values.”
It said it would carry out an internal review of its event approval and sponsorship processes.
The event has raised new questions about the culture of crypto, which is seeking to prove itself as a respectable industry after countless scandals including the collapse of exchange FTX. It comes as the price of bitcoin trades at record highs of more than $70,000 and crypto executives cheer renewed optimism in the digital assets industry.
Copper enables hedge funds, trading houses and other institutions to securely store and trade crypto on exchanges. Hammond joined Copper’s board last year after it closed a fundraising round valuing the company at $2bn. He holds a “small stake” in the business, alongside investors including Barclays, British billionaire hedge fund manager Alan Howard and European venture capital firms Target Global and Dawn Capital.
The event was held in a red-lacquered private dining room and was open to all attendees of a crypto industry conference last week, which Copper sponsored. “Transcend the ordinary at the Copper experience,” read an invitation for the event, which said the party was “brought to you by Copper” and allowed attendees to “explore all five senses”.
According to Copper, the party was organised by a third party and included “a number of performance artists”, including a palm reader, magician and the man and woman on the table.
“Clearly, the story is embarrassing and, taken in the context presented, is not in line with our values as a company,” it said on Thursday.
The company was founded in 2018 in east London, and has so far unsuccessfully sought to gain regulatory approval from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority.
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