Chief Growth Officer & CMO · Bitcoin · Europe
Imo Babics
Currently CGO & CMO at Relai
17 years scaling growth. Bitcoiner since 2017. I help European fintechs scale across EU markets.
"Imo has been a co-founder-like partner and a key driver of Relai's growth."
Julian Liniger — CEO & Co-founder, Relai
About
I've done this before. Twice.
Chief Growth Officer and CMO at Relai, a MiCA-licensed, Bitcoin-only self-custody app scaling across DACH and Europe. I joined early, co-steer corporate strategy as part of the C-suite, and own everything that shapes how the company grows and competes.
Before that, I scaled Bitpanda from 100,000 to over 1 million users. Built the marketing team from scratch, from zero to seventeen people, and owned acquisition, retention, and brand across Europe. Then left.
Between the two, I've had a hand in introducing over a million Europeans to Bitcoin.
Before fintech: a decade in media and entertainment, working with Universal Pictures, Xbox, PlayStation, Microsoft, and Huawei.
In 2026, I was named one of the Fintech Marketing Hub's Top 30 Most Influential Fintech Marketers in Europe.
A week of live data beats two months of internal debate. Every time.
Growth is cross-functional. Marketing, product, tech, compliance, and support all shape the outcome.
Simplicity wins. In messaging and in decisions.
AI is the great multiplier. I use it daily to scale my team's capabilities without scaling the headcount.
"Imo brings a unique and versatile skill set, making him an exceptional marketer, especially in the Bitcoin space."
Raphaël Schön — Content Strategist, ex-Bitpanda & Relai
Track Record
Companies I've grown.
2021–Present
Relai
Chief Growth Officer, Director & Board Member of Relai EU
Architected and executed the international expansion strategy across core EU markets: Germany, Italy, Spain and beyond
10x-ed monthly active users
Built localised, high-velocity go-to-market engines across 5 languages to dominate regional search and acquisition
MiCA compliance navigation without sacrificing growth velocity
Managing Director of Relai's EU entity, responsible for statutory representation and regulatory alignment at the EU level
2018–2019
Bitpanda
Head of Marketing
Built marketing from 0 to 17 people
Owned acquisition, retention, brand, content, social, CRM & PR
Scaled from 100,000 to 1 million+ users and 180+ employees
Grew annual trading volume to 10-figure range
Made Bitpanda an award-winning European fintech brand
2013–2015
Universal Pictures
International Media Manager
Oversaw launch campaigns for theatrical releases across 50+ territories
Managed advertising budgets of over $300 million
Global go-to-market experience at scale
2009–2017
Agency Years
Havas Media · OMD International · Universal McCann · Publicis
Head of Digital at Havas Media: grew digital share of agency billings, led team and senior client relationships
Xbox, PlayStation, Microsoft, Huawei, EA, BASF
Worked across CEE, UK, and international markets
Work With Me
Ways to work together
Currently fully committed to Relai. The below reflects how I engage outside of my main role: selectively, and when timing is right.
Get in touch →Speaking & Media
Available for conference talks, podcast appearances, and media requests on Bitcoin adoption or startup and growth in Europe.
Selective · By invitation
Strategic Advisory
I'll review your strategy, challenge your assumptions, and share what I've seen work, and what hasn't. You and your team do the work; I help you make sure it's the right work.
Equity + cash · Flexible structure
Board Roles
Open to board and non-executive director conversations with Bitcoin or fintech companies operating in Europe.
Long-term · By introduction
Writing & Talks
How I think
Bitcoin adoption, European fintech, and what operators get wrong about regulated-market growth.
Talk
BTC Prague 2026
Europe: Bitcoin's Biggest Untapped Market. Just Unlocked.
450 million Europeans hold $40 trillion in household wealth, yet fewer than 6% of Germans own any Bitcoin. Why a single MiCA license just made Europe Bitcoin's biggest adoption opportunity.
▶ Play video
Article
imobabics.com
Bitcoin Marketing Is Different. Here's Why.
Most Bitcoin companies are talking to Bitcoiners. The next wave of growth comes from everyone else, and that requires a different approach entirely.
Read article →
Article
imobabics.com
How MiCA Unlocked 450 Million Users
Why Europe's regulatory framework is Bitcoin's biggest tailwind, and why most operators are too scared to use it.
Read article →
Article
imobabics.com
8 Things I Learned in Startups
Lessons from scaling two of Europe's most significant fintech companies. The stuff no one tells you before you're already in it.
Read article →
Article
Bitcoin Magazine
Europeans Suck At Managing Their Finances. Bitcoin Fixes This.
Why €1.2 trillion in European wealth is sitting idle in bank accounts, and why Bitcoin is the most powerful fix hiding in plain sight.
Read on Bitcoin Magazine →
Article
imobabics.com
10 Things I Believe About Good Marketing
A personal manifesto, mostly stolen. Ten marketing beliefs I keep coming back to, from Ogilvy to Rory Sutherland.
Read article →
Podcast
YouTube
Bitcoin Growth in Europe: A Conversation
On scaling Bitcoin adoption across regulated EU markets, what MiCA actually means for operators, and why most companies get European growth wrong.
▶ Play video
Interview
Startitup · In Slovak
Bitcoin je vzácne aktívum, nemá majiteľa, firmu ani žiadneho CEO
A conversation with Startitup on why Bitcoin doesn't belong among ordinary cryptocurrencies. This interview is in Slovak.
Read interview →
Projects
Things I've built
Side projects where I build in public: tools for Bitcoin savers, experiments in product, and things I wish existed.
Live · Free tool
whentobuybtc.xyz
A Bitcoin signal tool for European savers. Combines Fear & Greed index, the 200-day moving average, and distance from all-time high into one clear, jargon-free signal. Tells you whether conditions are historically favourable for buying Bitcoin, without the noise. Designed, coded, and iterated entirely using Claude as a co-builder.
Built with Claude · Next.js · Railway
Visit →
FAQ
Common questions
The things people ask before they get in touch.
Imo Babics is a prominent fintech executive who serves as the Chief Growth Officer and CMO at Relai, Europe's leading MiCA-licensed Bitcoin app. Originally from Slovakia, he moved to the UK to study Business Management at the University of Surrey, and spent his formative years building a career in London, before eventually making Vienna his home.
He has 17 years in marketing and has been part of the Bitcoin industry since 2017. Previously, he was Head of Marketing at Bitpanda, where he scaled the platform from 100,000 to over 1 million users and built the marketing team from zero to seventeen people. Before fintech he spent a decade in media and entertainment, working with Universal Pictures, Xbox and PlayStation. In 2026, he was named one of the Fintech Marketing Hub's Top 30 Most Influential Fintech Marketers in Europe.
As Chief Growth Officer, Chief Marketing Officer, and Managing Director of the EU entity, Imo is a core member of Relai's leadership team. Beyond steering the company's commercial trajectory, he co-runs the overarching business alongside his C-suite peers, shaping corporate strategy and making critical operational decisions across all facets of the organisation.
On the execution side, Imo has full ownership of how the company grows, competes, and is perceived. He sets the brand and growth strategy, owns performance and analytics across all acquisition channels, leads Relai Private & Business, and runs the Growth department spanning marketing, content, social, PR, and customer experience. Under his leadership, Relai has grown to over 600,000 app downloads and $1 billion in total volume, expanded across Germany, Italy, Spain and beyond, and navigated MiCA compliance without sacrificing growth velocity.
Imo is available for conference talks, podcast appearances, and media requests on Bitcoin adoption and startup growth in Europe. He is also open to board and non-executive director conversations with Bitcoin or fintech companies operating in Europe. Get in touch at hello@imobabics.com or via LinkedIn.
Imo writes about Bitcoin adoption, European fintech, and startup growth. Key pieces include Bitcoin Marketing Is Different. Here's Why., How MiCA Unlocked 450 Million Users, 10 Things I Believe About Good Marketing, and 8 Things I Learned from 8 Years in Startups.
He has also been published in Bitcoin Magazine. See the full list in the Writing & Talks section above.
Contact
Let's talk Bitcoin.
If you're building something serious in European Bitcoin, or you want someone on stage or on the record who has actually done it, get in touch.