Argentas Crypto Banking

Introduction to Argentas Crypto Banking via bridge entities

As a part of the Argentas Project and to respond to the growing need for crypto-friendly banking services for those who use, invest and transact in cryptocurrencies, and to build a bridge between physical and digital economies, Argentas is introducing the second dimension as described in its white paper, the “Bridge Entities”, to create a model “bridge bank” offering advanced crypto banking products and services.

Case for crypto banking

While banks and bank accounts will eventually morph into the blockchain, in the medium term, a new type of digital banks will serve an important role as bridge entities between crypto and traditional economies.

• Vast creation of crypto-driven income and wealth

Vast amount of new economic activity and wealth will be generated in the cryptocurrency and blockchain sphere. Blockchain, or “distributed ledger technologies”, will enable the creation of the next generation internet making possible real-time online transfer of any item of value, the “Internet of Value”. Cryptocurrencies represent a new global medium of exchange.

• Convergence of digital and physical realms

The traditional and digital realms converge, and this process will require bridge entities enabling flow of funds and transactions between the traditional and crypto economies. Traditional assets will be ‘tokenized’ into digital ones, stored in the blockchain in a permanent, tamper-free and immutable way, making them directly transferable and exchangeable in the crypto sphere.

• Need for crypto friendly banks to bridge the gap

Today, many incumbent banks and regulators are hostile to crypto users and investors, often blocking access to crypto products and services entirely — they either do not understand crypto and/or are afraid of it, causing a paralysis. To change this and enable growth of commercial and financial crypto activities, a new generation of “crypto friendly” banks bridging the gap between physical and digital must be created.

• Fueling crypto economy and boosting growth

Bridge banks will help to fuel the crypto economy, and make cryptocurrencies part of the everyday life. They have an important role in catalyzing this revolutionary development. More and more income and wealth will be generated and stored in the crypto realm, which will require a completely new concept of a ”hybrid” bridge bank with the ability to transact in, transfer and hold both crypto and traditional assets.

Our mission — the starting point

Argentas as a project was formed to fulfill its mission of making global financial services faster, cheaper, easier, more convenient and secure, and offer them with style and substance.

This mission is best achieved by developing and implementing advanced financial technologies and platforms leveraging blockchain and other distributed ledger technologies (DLT)

The Argentas Project

To realize our mission, the Argentas Project has been created.

The end-to-end second generation blockchain project Argentas has 3 key dimensions: (i) the core protocol and blockchain with its native cryptocurrency, (ii) the bridge entities interfacing with the blockchain and connecting digital with the physical economy, and (iii) the decentralized financial applications (dapps) at a later stage.

• Blockchain

The Hydra Protocol, HydraNet and its native cryptocurrency will be the core components of the Argentas Platform and Ecosystem

• Bridge entities

Banks and other financial intermediaries bridging the gap between traditional and crypto economies & interfacing with HydraNet when launched

• Dapps

Decentralized applications running on the HydraNet, eventually taking over from existing financial products and services

This document focuses on the bridge entities. Argentas White Paper explaining the core protocol, the blockchain and its native cryptocurrency, and the bridge entities and dapps in that context is available on the website argentas.io as well as the “Architecture of Money” illustrating the whole setup brief.

Superior crypto banking services

To catalyze and accelerate the growth and convergence of the crypto economy with the physical one, Argentas will create a model bridge entity, a ‘crypto bank’, and eventually replicate it into a global network of such bridge banks

As a dimension of the overall project, Argentas will build a model bridge entity that facilitates the movement of assets between crypto and traditional financial markets as well as transactions thereon. It will eventually interface with the proprietary HydraNet blockchain as well as with other key blockchains and cryptocurrencies.

The Argentas Crypto Banking (ACB) unit(s) will be offering industry leading crypto asset financial products and services to individual, institutional, qualified and professional investors.

ACB will help both traditional and crypto market participants make the most out of attractive opportunities arising from the emerging growth of crypto currencies and assets through a comprehensive range of banking services such as:

• Transaction Banking Account, payment and card products & services denominated both in crypto and fiat
• Private Banking Wealth management for crypto and traditional assets
• Corporate Finance Advisory services for blockchain projects such as ICO fundraising advice, token design and risk management
• Custody Services Institution-grade custody service including robust secure storage of crypto assets
• Trading & Liquidity Management for crypto and fiat currency assets
• Asset & Investment Management of crypto and traditional investment products

Crypto Banking products & services

Global Argentas Network of Bridge Banks

The first crypto banking unit will be a model for Argentas bridge entities, which template can be easily replicated in various key global financial centers. This will enable creation of an institutional, reputable global network of bridge banks, in line with the global nature of cryptocurrencies, while having a physical global foothold inspiring trust and confidence in crypto banking.

Facilitating the initial bridge banks is important in catalyzing and accelerating growth, but any banks and other intermediaries will be free to interface with the eventual Argentas’ HydraNet blockchain, when it has been launched, and become members of the Argentas network of bridge entities.

Crypto banks disrupting the banking paradigm

Argentas will provide best-in-class user experience and value-added with superior online banking facilities integrating traditional and crypto banking features.

Global network of bridge banks

Eventually, the model bridge bank will be replicated globally, forming a network of bridge banks situated in key financial centers and interfacing with the HydraNet blockchain and other key blockchains.

Regulation — partnering with smart regulators

The bridge banking units will be fully regulated and supervised in their domiciles — but in the smart way.

Intelligent, pragmatic, constructive regulators are important global partners in promoting the adoption of cryptocurrencies and blockchain in value-adding everyday use to realize their potential.

Argentas is analyzing the regulatory landscape and will locate the bridge bank entities in jurisdictions, where (a) regulation is smart, stable, predictable and supportive of the development of crypto banking, and (b) regulators are intelligent, friendly, pragmatic, constructive, and solution-oriented to help the sector flourish.

The choice of jurisdiction for the first crypto banking entity will be announced, when the preparatory phase has been completed and a deal with smart regulators made in principle.

Technology, security & compliance

As a technology project, Argentas will develop both its blockchain platform and the banking platform for the model bridge entity. Argentas has vast experience in developing state-of-the-art Fintech platforms within its team. Proprietary development will guarantee smooth interconnectivity across the ecosystem, helping to boost and catalyze the growth of the crypto economy through such bridge entities.

• Technology

Argentas is primarily a technology project, focusing on the developing and building advanced financial technologies. Along with the blockchain track, Argentas will deliver the operating platform for the bridge bank entities that will then be able to interface with the eventual HydraNet blockchain as well as with other blockchains in terms of crypto asset transactions. The technologies are state-of-the-art, most modern, and there are no legacy systems in the project. Prototype for core banking functions exists already.

• Security

There has been great concern of the safety of crypto holdings. Argentas crypto banking will deliver the most secure solution in the market. “Military-grade” storage for cryptographic keys and crypto assets will be offered.

• Compliance

Argentas crypto banking entities will adhere to strict KYC and AML requirements. This is important in increasing the credibility of crypto and blockchain realms. Tools to identify compromised transactions and assets will be developed, acquired and used.

As a bank, important features are absolute security of assets held in custody and transacted, and the compliance with KYC and AML regulation to keep the realm clean of tainted assets and transactions. Security and compliance will help increase trust and confidence in the crypto assets, and provide with a safe way to deal with them.

Better crypto knowledge facilitating greater use, value-added and performance

Argentas will help promote the mainstream adoption of blockchain and crypto by helping ever wider audiences understand the potential and benefits of blockchain and other crypto assets, enabling a true global economic transformation and global financial inclusion.

So far, not many understand the realm of blockchain and cryptocurrencies at a level, where they feel fully comfortable with it. To increase the use, value-added of and investment potential in these digital assets, the crypto banking offer will feature educational, informational and risk management tools, and access to experts. This will increase confidence and comfort of users, which will turn into increased use, transactions and investments into crypto assets, with improved results and performance.

Argentas crypto banking will help its clients to reach the best financial performance within their defined risk tolerance, while having the ease, convenience and confidence to invest in crypto assets.

Argentas crypto bank(s) will provide the clients with smartly supervised and regulated framework that will them achieve their goals in a comfortable setting. This will help to increase everyday adoption of cryptocurrencies.

Project timeline for the model bridge bank

• Q1/18 Initial research and development, preparation of primer, white paper, presentation, website, token distribution and other documents
• Q2-Q3/18 Planning for legal and operating structures, release of technical white paper, preparations for token distribution (private pre-distribution phase)
• Q4/18 Token pre-distribution, finalization of key structural preparations
• Q1/19 Public token distribution (ICO), execution of structures, team expansion
• Q2-Q3/19 Application for banking license (bridge banking model unit), system development
• Q4/19 System testing & preparation for launch
• Q1/20 License & launch

Team

Behind the Argentas’ project is exceptionally strong Fintech substance, with decades of experience mastering both the financial services and financial technology realms. The team has already created and operated robust, stable and error-free banking platforms in real banking environment.

Mastering Fintech

Unique among most Fintech / blockchain projects, Argentas represents an exceptional command of both banking and financial services experience and expertise, producing pioneering, innovative solutions for the industry, combined with a robust knowledge, expertise and hands-on experience in dealing with and developing banking, blockchain and other related financial technologies and their applications.

Finance

Superior banking and financial services experience of 20 years at founder level encompassing online retail, investment banking / corporate finance, asset and fund management, private banking and wealth management, brokerage, research, trading, treasury, corporate banking, payments, cards etc. — a complete command of the banking and financial services sphere.

Technology

Unsurpassed mastery of financial technologies from banking and financial services to blockchain and cryptocurrency platforms, with hands-on development experience in blockchain area e.g. smart contracts in different environments creation of digital assets and tokens.

Funding for the Argentas Project

Argentas leverages the most modern tools — and the tools that are appropriate for the new emerging crypto economy — to fund the project. The fundraising takes place in the form of a phased token sale in contribution to the project.

Private pre-distribution

The first phase of fundraising underway is a limited organic private pre-distribution phase of the Argentas Exchange Units (AXU).

The early contributors and supporters of the project will benefit from the privileged terms of the limited pre-distribution phase. The pre-distribution price per AXU is 0.4 XLM i.e. ca. 0.10 USD or 0.08 EUR for 1 AXU.

Join the revolution and sign up for the pre-distribution on the signup page of the Argentas website argentas.io — click “Get AXU” or “Sign up”.

Public distribution (ICO)

After the pre-distribution phase, preparations will be made for the public distribution of AXU i.e. an initial coin offering, ICO.

This phased token distribution pgrogram will provide the project with sufficient funds to develop both the blockchain and enable creation of model bridge entities. In terms of the bridge bank, it will fund the building of the banking platform and infrastructure, execute its launch strategy and meet comfortably all capital requirements. The size of the eventual ICO proceeds will determine the number and size of bridge entities created, as a certain part of the funds will be allocated to such entities including the platform, capitalization and operations, while other parts of funding will support the core blockchain technology development, its interfaces, applications and the ecosystem being created around it, inclusive of the bridge entities.

Argentas Exchange Unit

Argentas Exchange Units (AXU) are smart tokens issued on the Stellar network. There are a total of one billion AXU issued and outstanding. The pre-distribution phase will cover a maximum of 10% of that i.e. 100 million AXU, and the subsequent ICO phase at least 600 million AXU.

Argentas Wallet

Argentas has created the Argentas Wallet (pc, tablet, mobile app) to enable fast and convenient acquisition, holding, transactions, transfers and exchange of AXU. The speedy transactions in AXU taking place in a couple of seconds will give some foretaste of the eventual native cryptocurrency of HydraNet.

More information

Please visit our website argentas.io

The contents of this release in a more visual form in this brochure

Check out the one-pager as well for a snapshot of the same.