Crypto projects must build bridges with the digital economy: Belo

The prices of the crypto assets They are not having their best time. Although they have gradually recovered ground, as have other assets considered risky, they are still far from their glory days: before a wave of bankruptcies and scandals depleted the value of this market.

Despite the fact that so many investors —especially retailers— lost their life savings due to mistakes or mismanagement in some companies, crypto market enthusiasts continue to believe in the potential of this technology, which is spreading step by step with projects in everyone.

One of these enthusiasts faithful to the ideal of cryptocurrencies is Manuel Beaudroit, CEO of Belo, which is recognized for having become the first Argentine company to enter the crypto card program of MasterCard. he chatted with The Economist and spoke of the new stage for payments with cryptocurrencies.

crypto solutions

Belo is a digital wallet that allows its users to move between Argentine pesos and cryptocurrencies. It aims to make cryptocurrency payments an everyday experience. For Beaudroit, this aspect should be a priority for crypto projects if what they aspire to is “living in crypto every day”.

For Belo, cryptocurrency payment companies should aspire to be a bridge between digital assets and the needs of users. “We are developing the products so that more people can solve daily problems with this type of asset and with its technology,” explained Beaudroit.

Hand in hand with Tapi (a payment service provider that previously added to its effort to provide mobile phone recharges), Belo launched a new function at the beginning of February that allows its users to pay for services such as water or electricity. electricity. The option is already open to 40,000 users.

barriers and bridges

Although he hopes that more users will soon have access to this benefit and that payments for services with cryptocurrencies will become more common all over the world, he acknowledges that there are obstacles to this happening. One of the most important is the adoption of technology and sometimes the lack of options.

“The cryptocurrency payment environment is far from perfect when you think of a ‘hyperbitcoinized’ world where everyone can pay with crypto. For that to happen, it takes a long time. But, the most important thing is not technology, but how to build solutions for people’s problems”.

“Naturally, a large portion of our users are crypto natives. We know that this economy is global and they have been advancing hand in hand with these people, but there are users of all age ranges. All of them need a bridge that allows connecting two worlds, causing this to grow”, he said.

live in crypto

Beaudroit stated that there is a growing segment of the world population that is digital native and wants their default currency to be a cryptocurrency (or even already is), so they need solutions to their needs. “For this reason, by offering payments for services with cryptocurrencies we are generating value.”

“Crypto assets have many advantages: they allow international payments to be made in a simple, cheap and friendly way. This is why its use is growing. By allowing service payments, users avoid dealing with multiple providers. This way they can live in crypto every day,” he said.

Momento Kodak

Faced with the rejection that traditional banking tends to show about cryptocurrencies, the CEO of Belo stressed that every day the opening of banks to the crypto market is greater, which has led them to launch proposals that do not comply with this ideology, but that are contributions towards the adoption of cryptocurrencies.

“In centuries of existence, banks have had no competition, except by themselves. Recently this changed with digital banks. In a way, they may be living their Kodak moment. That’s why in some you can already buy Bitcoin or Ether, and they safeguard them for the user,” he said.

These offers from banks, he added, do not meet the ideals of Bitcoin and cannot be considered projects of the crypto environment in the full sense of the term, because the user cannot have access to their assets. But they contribute to more and more people being able to integrate into the digital economy.

Security in the face of greater interest

Given the collapses registered last year in the prices of cryptocurrencies and the bankruptcies of large companies in the sector, Beaudroit stressed the need to act prudently and in favor of the user, and to carefully study which cryptocurrencies each project will operate with. .

In Argentina, 16% of the population has bought crypto assets and 34% plans to do so, according to a study by the company IMS, from Aleph. For this reason, Belo was opened to the payment of more than 9,000 services. Beaudroit stressed the need to take care of what for many people is their first approach to crypto.

jose.rivera@eleconomista.mx