The words fintech and crypto have seeped into the psyche of the mainstream masses in a big way, especially as an increasing number of companies have started to operate and flourish within both market segments over the last decade or so.
In its most basic sense, the term ‘fintech’ can be thought of as the application of digital technology within the context of a traditional finance ecosystem.
In recent years, a number of companies operating within this burgeoning fintech market have started to make inroads into the crypto sphere, seeking to explore the innate potential of this burgeoning asset class.
In this article, we will look to explore some fintech companies that have not only successfully transitioned into the digital asset domain but are also dominating it. So without any further ado, let’s get straight into the heart of the matter.
Square
Jack Dorsey-led Square, a mobile Payments platform, has been on a tear when it comes to crypto adoption over the last few years. In fact, the firm was the first big-name player to bet big on Bitcoin — before other firms like Microstrategy, 3iQ, Tesla, etc made their foray into the crypto scene — all the way back in October 2020 by investing a cool $50 million into the flagship crypto asset.
Not only that, just last month, the firm doubled down on its commitment towards crypto by adding another $170 million worth of BTC to its coffers.
As things stand, Square’s Cash App is touted to be one of the easiest ways through which novice investors can buy and sell BTC. The platform is quite easy to navigate and allows users to obtain a certain amount of bitcoin back on every transaction as a reward.
Not only that, the aforementioned rewards can be spent using the company’s free Visa debit card offering — called the Cash Card.
Paysafe
Founded in the late ’90s, Paysafe is a multinational online payments company that is regulated in the United Kingdom. Though primarily known for its fiat payment services, over the years, the firm has expanded its scope of operations quite substantially and has been a part of several notable mergers and acquisitions, thus allowing the firm to operate within a host of niche’ domains including e-commerce, cross-border payments, Cryptocurrencies , etc.
In this regard, it bears mentioning that one of Paysafe’s primary subsidiaries, Skrill, has been making a lot of waves over the last few years within the crypto sector, especially since it allows users to buy and sell a wide range of cryptos using a total of over 40 fiat assets with the touch of a button.
To be a bit more specific, when using Skrill, users can facilitate transactions via a host of prominent crypto assets including Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Dash, Ethereum, Ethereum Classic, Kyber, Litecoin, Tezos, Stellar, XLM, and Ox, in exchange for the Euro, British Pound, and US dollar, amongst many other prominent local currencies.
eToro
Israeli social trading and multi-asset brokerage firm eToro has become a name to be reckoned with when it comes to cryptocurrencies.
Founded in 2006, within just a decade and a half, the company has quickly garnered an insane amount of mainstream traction, as is highlighted by the fact that the company was valued at $2.5 billion last year.
Using the eToroX digital asset platform investors can buy/sell a wide range of crypto assets in a quick, efficient manner. Furthermore, the platform offers ultra-low fee rates and allows users to employ a number of advanced order types including FOK, IOC, and GTC TIF.
Lastly, it should be pointed out that the ecosystem features 80+ pairs of crypto, FX, commodities and is regulated by the Gibraltar Financial Services Commission.
PayPal
Paypal is often referred to as the world’s leading payments processor. The company made its foray into the crypto market last October and there has been no looking back ever since.
According to data available online, PayPal’s stock value has surged quite immensely since it started allowing its 29 million-strong userbase to start buying/holding/transferring cryptocurrencies.
In this regard, as per a report released earlier this year, the firm revealed that its fourth-quarter profits for the year 2020 had surged by a sizeable 36% as compared to the previous fiscal cycle, thus clearly suggesting that the company’s crypto moves may have a lot to do with its recent growth.
Nexo
Nexo is widely recognized as being one of the world’s leading regulated financial institutions for digital assets. Its parent company has been around for over a decade now and has over $5 billion in assets under management (AUM).
Not only that, to date, the firm has processed over $20 billion worth of transactions.
The company’s instant Crypto Credit Lines enable users to obtain fiat loans by staking a wide range of supported crypto assets — including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Ripple, Stellar, Bitcoin Cash, EOS, amongst many others.
Furthermore, it bears mentioning that the platform offers support for 40+ fiat currencies and is accessible across a total of 200+ jurisdictions.
The platform offers lucrative interest rates to individuals storing their assets on the platform. These rates can be increased quite substantially (by up to 2%) if users deploy the company’s native crypto offering, i.e. the NEXO token.
