KuCoin announced an exclusive multi-year agreement with Tomorrowland Winter and Tomorrowland Belgium from 2026 to 2028, making the exchange the music festival’s exclusive cryptocurrency and payments partner.
The move comes just weeks after KuCoin obtained a service provider license in the European Union under the Cryptocurrency Markets Regulation (MiCA).
The KuCoin MiCA game hits the mass market
KuCoin EU Exchange recently obtained a crypto asset services provider license in Austria under the EU’s MiCA regime, giving it a fully regulated position in the bloc once the fresh Brussels Rulebook for exchanges, depositories and stablecoins comes into force.
The Tomorrowland deal signals how KuCoin plans to leverage this status to not only operate a compliant trading system, but also to connect crypto rails directly to mainstream culture.
KuCoin said the Tomorrowland deal will include Tomorrowland Winter 2026 in Alpe d’Huez, France and Tomorrowland Belgium 2026 in Boom, Belgium, with the same arrangements continuing until 2028.
Related: Bali’s Burning Man-inspired festival gains momentum Web3: Here’s how
From sponsorship to payment systems
KuCoin insists that this is not just a logo game. A KuCoin spokesperson told Cointelegraph that as an exclusive payments partner, the exchange is working with Tomorrowland to weave cryptocurrencies into the festival’s existing payment stack so that “financial tools” are behind the scenes of ticket, merchandise and food and beverage sales.
The stated goal is to keep rails “intuitive and invisible” rather than forcing festival-goers to utilize cumbersome wallets or unfamiliar flows, with KuCoin positioning itself to facilitate the safe and sound and proficient flow of value while fans focus on the music.
The company wouldn’t specify exactly which assets and rails would be supported locally, or whether every purchase would be fulfilled natively on the network, but did say that “Trust first. Keep trading.” the mantra runs through his message.
The spokesman highlighted advanced security, multi-layered protection and compliance with EU standards as the basis for taking cryptocurrencies beyond the trading screen and into live events.
Related: What are cryptocurrency markets (MiCA)?
I will draw conclusions from the flop of Tomorrowland FTX
Tomorrowland organizers have been here before. There will be a festival in 2022 announced Web3’s partnership with FTX Europe, which promised NFTs and the “future of music festivals” before collapsing along with the exchange itself a few months later.
This experience makes choosing a MiCA-licensed partner and emphasis on user protection more than just a cosmetic issue; this is the second attempt at combining culture and cryptocurrencies (this time with regulatory scaffolding and clearer barriers).
Instead of setting public tough targets for user numbers or payment volumes by 2028, KuCoin claims that success will be the “seamless integration” of cryptocurrencies into the festival experience:
“We want to demonstrate that digital assets can be a fundamental element of global digital finance, moving from a niche technology to a mainstream utility.”
Related: The Spanish regulator sets the rules for the MiCA transition for crypto platforms
