Fiat Payment Rails and Neobanking Services Vital for Cryptocurrency Adoption, Say Industry Figures

Introduction

Fiat payment rails and neobanking services are playing a crucial role in driving mainstream adoption and acceptance of cryptocurrencies, according to industry experts. Executives from OpenPayd, Ramp Network, and Damex discussed the increasing importance of third-party payment rails and banking platforms at the recent European Blockchain Convention in Barcelona.

Building Trust and Addressing Concerns

Iana Dimitrova, CEO of OpenPayd, highlighted the growing level of mistrust among regulators and traditional financial institutions regarding payment rails in the crypto world. She emphasized that fiat on-ramps and payment rails can bridge this gap by addressing concerns around identity, traceability, and money laundering.

Specialist Actors and Shielding Banks

Samuel Rondot, the managing director of Damex, explained how their firm specializes in providing fiat on and off-ramps for higher-risk clients in industries such as iGaming and hedge funds. Services like OpenPayd and Ramp act as specialist actors that facilitate AML and KYC processes, shielding traditional banks from directly dealing with cryptocurrency-related businesses.

Seamless Transition to Crypto-Enabled Products

Szymon Sypniewicz, CEO and co-founder of Ramp Network, discussed how their services offer a single API platform to the global fiat system, enabling users to buy and sell cryptocurrencies worldwide. The aim is to make the transition to crypto-enabled products smooth and seamless for users.

Challenges Faced by Crypto-Native Businesses

All three experts highlighted the gap between emerging and existing financial technologies as a major challenge for crypto-native businesses. The traditional banking technology of incumbent banks does not align with the level of innovation and agility required by these businesses. Infrastructure providers like OpenPayd and Ramp help bridge this gap by aggregating different payment rails and channels.

Compliance and Regulatory Framework

Compliance standards are another prerequisite for wider adoption of cryptocurrencies. The development of the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets (MiCA) framework is expected to provide a common framework for Web3 and traditional finance players to operate more easily.

Overall, fiat payment rails and neobanking services are seen as essential in driving the adoption and acceptance of cryptocurrencies in the mainstream market.