Bitspark’s Mission And Roadmap To Build, Grow And Change How You Transact With Cryptocurrency
The crypto industry is truly a spectacular one. It experiences 10-year changes in 1 minute and matures every day onwards. Hardly any other industry can withstand let alone grow under these types of conditions, yet here we are. Every day we see more projects adding to the future, creating value for people to live better in the present. No matter the way there, we’re all contributing to this single purpose.
Our mission is to make exchanging between crypto and cash as easy as sending an email.
To create an end-to-end, cash to crypto solution is Bitspark’s road to change. Our mission is to make exchanging between crypto and cash as easy as sending an email. One of the hardest things to do is to make complex things simple but we believe we’ve done it and I want to share what this solution looks like for those of you interested in Bitspark’s ultimate mission and roadmap.
Let’s talk about cash
Some of you may have followed Bitspark’s journey since 2014 when we sent the world’s first cash in, cash out Bitcoin transaction from Hong Kong to the Philippines. One would think the trend to push toward a cashless society would make cash less important but it has been the opposite.
It’s dirty and inconvenient but there’s more circulation of cash now than ever before. A recent report by BIS (Bank for International Settlement) found that cash in circulation as a share of GDP has risen from 7% to 9% in the past couple of years. The combined GDP of these countries comprised more than 80% of the world’s economy. It’s not just small payments like remittances where nearly 90% of which are paid in cash but larger payments are increasingly paid in cash too.
The point is that cash is important and will remain important for a long while, so it’s crucial to build in consideration of it.
What about crypto?
Alongside cash usage, Bitcoin transactions have continued to grow. AT&T announced they will be accepting Bitcoin for bill payments, Bitcoin ATMs are cropping up all over the world, and more product and service solutions to buy, sell, exchange and invest in cryptocurrency are slowly providing access to make cryptocurrency as prevalent as cash today.
It’s useful to think about the demand for cryptocurrency and the drive. Some are buying cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin because it has been the best performing asset in the last decade, others are using it as an economical way to send value across borders. In the worst circumstances, it has provided a way for people holding unstable currencies to exit into better options. No matter the drive, the demand for crypto has been increasing because Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are giving people choice. Whatever the reason for someone to buy cryptocurrency, Bitspark wants to provide a seamless experience when someone converts their cash to crypto to send, receive or exchange it.
Owning the mile
When building a solution like Bitspark’s there are many considerations. Crypto is at the stage where the infrastructure support to transition between the physical and digital is at less than 1% of its capacity. In the industry, this infrastructure is called the fiat onramp and off ramps and essentially it is trying to solve cash to crypto fungibility.
Crypto is at the stage where the infrastructure support to transition between the physical and digital is at less than 1% of its capacity.
Fungibility between cash and crypto is a complex task in itself. It requires cash points and a lot of them! It requires applications interacting between users and cash points worldwide. Users need to hold, send and exchange their money. Cash points have considerations like the logistics of managing large amounts of cash and liquidity. Currently, most cash to crypto solutions rely on third parties to complete the last mile of the transaction but this just adds additional costs which is why we’ve been focused for years on owning the full mile. We know for a true fiat on and offramp solution to work, the infrastructure has to be owned end-to-end.
Western Union is a great example of this. Yes, often described as the antithesis of Bitcoin however their infrastructure for cash is the most robust in the world with 20,000 corridors in 200 countries that delivers cash within minutes of it passed over the counter. They are able to do this because they own both ends of the transaction. This is the quality and ubiquity crypto to fiat ramps need to get to and Bitspark aims to be at.
Changing how you transact with cryptocurrency
In five years we’ve expanded rapidly. Customers are able to cash in and cash out of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitshares, Zeph and 8 stablecoins. That’s 144 currency pairs customers can buy, sell and exchange with ease through our website and mobile app. We’ve built Bitspark to own the entire infrastructure including our own decentralized exchange, Sparkdex, that services our customers’ orders and a robust cash point network, but we want to do more.
Read our 5-year anniversary blog and learn more about the team
Bitspark wants to increase access for people worldwide to exchange their cash for crypto. This is Bitspark’s focus for the year, aiming to add thousands of new cash points all over the world. At these Bitspark cash points, customers should expect to be able to cash in and cash out their crypto and stablecoin balances worldwide.
Do you want to become an agent? Learn more about becoming a Bitspark cash point network.
Second focus is the pursuit to provide 180+ stablecoins for every token in the world. Bitspark has been a leader in stablecoins with launching the world’s first stablecoins outside of the USD. Most notably Sparkdex.HKD and Peg.PHP which were the first available in the market. It’s been an achievement to increase the methods customers can access cryptocurrencies and we’re excited for the range of stablecoins we will be releasing throughout the year. We believe that stablecoins play a crucial role in the adoption of cryptocurrency in the long run and we intend to be at the forefront of that.
Thirdly, we’re dedicated to providing products people want to use which is why we’ve redesigned our product range which will be updated in upcoming releases. We relaunched the web platform that is now live which has increased Bitspark’s transactions by 5x. Currently, our team is working on the redesign of the Mobile app too, that will provide the features of the web platform like holding balances, depositing and withdrawing cash and exchanging stablecoins and cryptocurrency conveniently as well as an option to become a cash point location in App form. Another development is that we will be integrating our rewards points, ZEPH, this year for customers to earn when they refer a friend to encourage Bitspark’s network growth over time.
Together with more Bitspark cash points, stablecoin and cryptocurrency accessibility and human-centric products. It won’t be long before more are able to access and transact with cryptocurrency like they do with cash.
