Why are cryptocurrencies a must-have of modern online banking?

Cryptocurrencies are one of the main digital banking trends reshaping the industry.Online banking finds itself forced to respond to the demand of its target audience, which in developing countries is showing increasing interest in cryptocurrencies. According to a recently published Chainalysis report, developing countries have become the main players in the cryptocurrency market in terms of digital assets adoption speed, with African and Asian countries leading the race.

Chainalysis report's key findings

🔹Lower-middle-income countries are at the forefront of mass cryptocurrency adoption, with India leading the Grassroots Adoption Index in 2023.

🔹Nigeria ranks as the second-highest country in the world in terms of crypto adoption.

🔹Nigeria’s crypto transaction volume grew year-over-year to $56.7bn.

🔹Crypto is one solution to Nigeria’s economic challenges, such as Naira’s decreasing value, Chainalysis says.

🔹Central and South Asian states dominate the Index, with six of the top 10 countries located in this region: India, Vietnam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Pakistan, and Thailand.

🔹These six countries account for almost 20% of global crypto activity.

🔹India is also the largest crypto market globally in terms of estimated transaction volume, second only to the United States.

🔹South Asian countries demonstrate high interest in gaming and gambling platforms, especially in the Philippines (19.9% of crypto-related web traffic).

🔹Vietnam and Pakistan show high demand on P2P exchange, overtopping India, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand by this indicator.

As Chainalysis analysts write, crypto in these countries are not just an investment, but an instrument to facilitate daily transactions.

The statistics demonstrate that cryptocurrencies have penetrated many residents’ day-to-day lives and currently become an important part of everyday routine transactions.

#TOKEN2049: 10 days later

Let's take a look back at what it was like!
Put a 🔥 for the cool Cross Finance booth.

The Roadmap of Cross Finance Ecosystem 2023-2024

The roadmap encompasses development plans, initiatives, and strategies that focus on maximizing the utility, value, and security of our ecosystem. It provides a chronological overview of new products launches and offline activities.

So, this quarter, we plan to launch the Cross Finance website, start the CrossFi Foundation and various programs related to it.

🔹Explore all of Cross Finance's plans above.

For more information, stay tuned here. Lots of updates coming soon.

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The CrossFi ecosystem is in a stage of active growth, filling with new services and applications. To fuel this development and stimulate the creation of new user-friendly tools, bridging crypto and fiat finances, the role of the supporting body was given to the CrossFi Foundation.

What is CrossFi Foundation?

CrossFi Foundation is a non-profit organization, which plays a crucial role in the scaling of the Cross Finance ecosystem. It is self-regulating, with most active users of the ecosystem being able to decide on its future and development.

CrossFi Foundation's main goal is to grant support to those who are interested in developing the ecosystem.

It narrows 4 key grant directions, with total budget reaching $50,000,000:

🔹Grants for users. They can enjoy airdrops for subscribing to CrossFi's social networks and inviting friends, take part in zealy and gleam campaigns with rewards or play a role of a CrossFi Chain tester with tangible incentives.

🔹Grants for ambassadors. If you have audience to share your experience with or you are a creator, you can apply for a CrossFi Foundation grant.

🔹Grants for developers. The CrossFi Foundation is supporting innovators building tools, services and dApps based on the CrossFi EVM-compatible blockchain. Both those who have ready-made solutions or just a cool idea can apply.

🔹Grants for validators. The CrossFi Foundation motivates those who participate in testnet or raise a full node, becoming a validator.

All grants are awarded in MPX coins, except for grants for product and service development. Developers receive grants in XFI coin.

Stay tuned so you don't miss the launch of CrossFi Foundation.

The incredible guys from Beatland!

On November 18-19 in Bali they will show their skills on stage.

🔹Cross Finance is a Title Partner of Beatland festival.

Watch this video and put a 🔥 for upcoming battle!

Main events from the Fintech world over the past week:

🔹India raises tax on outbound remittances in attempt to stem capital outflow

From October 1, 2023, the tax rate on outbound remittances from India jumps up to 20% from the current 5%. It will be possible to avoid taxation only if the volume of outbound remittances does not exceed INR 700,000 (app. $8500) per financial year or if the funds are allocated to educational & medical expenses. Vacation expenses, investments, & gifts are subject to taxation.

The reason for tightening taxation is the desire to limit the outflow of capital from India, which has intensified in recent years.

🔹B2B payments platform raises $30 million in attempt to fuel its expansion in $125-trillion market

Slope is a B2B payments platform that offers a range of services to streamline B2B workflows, automate order-to-cash processes, & simplify payments. This week Slope closed a $30 million venture round, with Union Square Ventures leading the round and OpenAI’s Sam Altman being among investors.

The company claims that its mission is to bring the sector of B2B payments into the digital age, using artificial intelligence-driven tools for risk assessment, payment reconciliation & cash management.

🔹Central America faces record-breaking remittances

Central America gets ready for another record-breaking year for inbound remittances, with regional totals approaching $45 billion. Guatemala alone is expected to receive $19.5 billion, while remittances in Nicaragua demonstrated an increase by 58.6% between January and June 2023. The main driver of growth is the recovery of migration flows in the USA after the pandemic and the growth of hourly wages in the US market.

Inbound remittances for some developing countries account for a lion's share of their national GDPs. For Nicaragua, they account for app. 30% of GDP. At the same time, according to the International Organization for Migration, the global average fee for cross-border remittances remains relatively high, standing at 6.3%.

TOKEN2049 in Singapore gave us the opportunity to network with many companies from the blockchain industry - payment and trading platforms, DeFi protocol developers, and venture funds. Everyone had their own view on the future of the industry, but there was something in common. When summarized, we saw a list of the most current trends in the blockchain industry and verified that CrossFi is developing in the right direction:

🔹Evolution instead of revolution: the crypto market grew out of adolescence with its maximalism and desires to destroy the old world and create a new one. Now we are hearing more discussions of synergy between crypto and traditional finances and about blockchain solutions able to be implemented into existing corporate systems.

🔹Crypto-fiat bridges: solutions that will allow seamless, fast and secure transfer of assets from fiat to cryptocurrencies and vice versa are still being actively in need. There is less talk about a total transition to cryptocurrency payments - it is obvious to everyone that users are not yet ready to completely switch to digital assets. Meanwhile, there are a growing number of users and merchants who would like to add cryptocurrency to the list of their payment instruments.

🔹Turnkey blockchain solutions: many business owners would like to implement blockchain solutions into their processes, but there is a lack of ready-made solutions that can be easily integrated into existing systems and do not require a complete reformatting of internal systems. Many are not ready for a complete transition to blockchain-based corporate systems, however they are ready to implement several blockchain-based modules.

🔹User-friendly interfaces: perhaps this is the key longtime topic for the blockchain industry. The market still lacks apps that are intuitive and easy to use, yet have extensive functionality and a high level of security, catering both needs of retail users and merchants.

0x Hosomaki, DeFi Strategy Lead at Cross Finance, was speaking about crypto and fiat payments during the TOKEN2049. Listen to his full presentation that showcases the full capabilities of the Cross Finance ecosystem.

Here are the key points:

🔹Differences and features of Cross Finance

We see fintech applications such as Revolut, PayPal, where you can pay someone in a super fast environment,user friendly, but yet it's still under the cover of a legacy payment & a centralized means of payment. We believe that Cross Finance is in phase three where you can make anything you want in just a few clicks. Pay someone through your DeFi wallet, connect obviously to Cross Finance through our DApp portal and let's break down how it works in different stages.

🔹How Cross Finance works

You come into CrossFi App, which has an integration of LayerZero. LayerZero allows us to swap tokens through Sushi on more than six networks using more than 200 tokens. This is only like super liquid tokens. So you can even imagine using your, let's say shitcoin to pay for your bread in Paris. Then the funds are sent to the CrossFi Chain which gives us an opportunity to have fast, reliable and secure transactions. Then the payment processor, depending on what was the initial action you had Visa, Mastercard, any of these or simply a payment Swift is made. All of these steps are on chain visible & you can check them through the Explorer.

🔹The CrossFi Chain

The CrossFi Chain is an EVM compatible chain. We incentivize people to come build on top of our application, which is going to be the stack on top of the banking system using crypto. And you're wondering, what is going to be the token that we're going to use in order to pay for transactions & who are going to be the validators? So the XFI token in itself will be used as an incentive, but also through governance where you will be able to vote what the future of our blockchain will look like and make fees, anything you want.Modular through governance. This is something super important for us.

How CrossFi is transforming banking services

According to a forecast by Juniper Research, the number of online banking users worldwide is expected to reach 3.6 billion by 2024. According to another study, at the end of 2022, the number of cryptocurrency owners in the world reached 425 million people. What if there was an app that combines traditional finance and new technologies from the world of cryptocurrencies? 

Uniting TradFi and DeFi in one banking app

Conservative users of banking apps could receive an easy entry to cryptocurrencies, while cryptocurrency owners would use banking services without having to switch between different apps and services. 

Unbanked persons who account for hundreds of millions inhabitants in developing countries are the third category of users of this multifunctional app. They could receive access to two worlds of financial services at once. Thus, we are talking about over 5 billion people who will have access to new tools - from traditional finance to cryptocurrencies.

The connection of these two worlds, cryptocurrencies and traditional finance, require new solutions. They must enhance the experience of traditional finance, apply its inherent mechanisms and intertwine them with new technologies and opportunities that digital innovations offer. This is the concept we focused on when developing CrossFi.

What features does CrossFi offer to its users?

🔹Interoperability of cryptocurrencies and real-world payments
🔹Improved user experience when managing fiat and crypto assets within one app
🔹EVM-compatible environment for developers looking for a platform to launch their decentralized solutions

Users of CrossFi APP, a full-fledged banking app, can easily open fiat and cryptocurrency accounts, buy, sell and exchange digital assets, make transfers, issue debit cards of leading payment systems.

Users of CrossFi xAPP, a decentralized app integrated with LayerZero and Sushi, benefit from receiving access to yield farming and liquid staking derivatives.

Bank for International Settlements's report sheds light on cryptocurrencies in cross-border transfers

The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) project, codenamed Atlas, studied the structure of cross-border payments in Bitcoin based on data obtained from crypto exchanges (off-chain data) and from public blockchains (on-chain data) gathered from nodes.

According to the study, transactions under $500 make up the bulk of Bitcoin transactions. This may indicate that Bitcoin is actively used for retail payments and remittances across the globe. Moreover, the study revealed that Bitcoin was increasingly being used for remittances, providing a lifeline for individuals in regions with limited access to traditional banking services.

For a long time, the world's central banks spoke only about the risks of cryptocurrencies, but as the DeFi market is expanding, they started to carefully mention the opportunities cryptocurrencies present to the financial system. Apparently, the world of cryptocurrencies will gradually merge with the world of traditional finance and they will be able to coexist, enriching each other.

Payments startups are on the funding rise

Although the macroeconomic situation in the world is holding back the growth of investment activity, startups developing with payment solutions are successfully conducting funding rounds, attracting millions to develop the payment industry. 

South Africa-based digital payment service provider Peach Payments received $30 mln in funding round led by UK-based private equity fund Stockholm, Sweden-based Brite Payments which specializes in instant bank payments across Europe raised $60M in funding.

South African payments infrastructure Stitch has raised $25 million in a Series A extension. Such an intensive investors' activity demonstrates a move towards an open banking and fintech boom on the market.

Obviously, developing economies are undergoing a profound financial transformation, with the emergence of open finance.

Cross Finance x MetaTalks Media

AMA session

🔹7 October at 16:30 UTC time

Guest: Oxyoshi - Business Development Executive at Cross Finance.

🔹Twitter Space: https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1ZkKzjDnAlLKv

Lets speak about #cryptocurrency, #Decentralization and #banking!

We start in 10 min!

Join: https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1ZkKzjDnAlLKv

During the TOKEN2049 Fedor Bogorodsky, Banking Director at Cross Finance, attended the «Ecosystem and Industry Growth: Envisioning the Decade Ahead for Crypto» session.

Let's take a look at the key points from Fedor's speech.

About CrossFi's goals

🔹CrossFi's ultimate goal is to offer a product that is not only free of charge, but also easily accessible in every corner of the globe, at any given moment, without any limitations.

🔹CrossFi's primary objective is to offer decentralized solutions for all users and merchants who could seamlessly transact and embrace cryptocurrencies in their everyday lives.

🔹DeFi helps eliminate all boundaries and liberate ourselves from any external constraints, this it's CrossFi's top priority.

On product concept

🔹CrossFi APP is a product that is incredibly user-friendly and effortlessly accessible.

🔹It operates in a thriving sector, transcending boundaries and embracing the virtual realm of the metaverse in all its diverse forms.

Interaction of chains

🔹CrossFi prioritizes the seamless integration of blockchains, not only within one network but also with other chains in the ecosystem in a streamlined and simplified manner.

Current developments

🔹CrossFi is currently in the process of implementing the LayerZero technology for DeFi, DAO, and Cross Finance initiatives, specifically the CrossFi platform.

🔹 What African states have the highest diaspora remittance inflow

Business Insider Africa published a rating of the top 10 African countries with the highest diaspora remittance inflow.

Despite the economic slowdown in source countries, remittance flows to the region are projected to rise by 1.3 and 3.7 per cent in 2023 and 2024, respectively. It means that African diasporas abroad will look for more convenient ways to send money to their motherlands. And these flows are not just pocket change, it's a game-changer for Africa's economic stability and growth.

🔹 Neobanks' profits are expected to grow on higher interest rates

Neobanks offer lower fees, meaning that their profits from transfers are also lower than traditional banks have. However, higher interest rates are now compensating for that, FT reports. Neobanks pay savers about twice as much on average on savings accounts as traditional banks.

Follow the money. This principle also applies to forecasting the growth of the user base of fintech apps. Users flow into apps where they see more benefits for themselves.

🔹 Lower remittance fee could save A$79 million annually to Pacific Island households

If remittance costs to Fiji, Tonga, and Vanuatu were reduced to the United Nations’ target of less than 3% per transaction, more than 79 million of Australian dollars annually would go directly to households in those countries, writes Dr Collins, research fellow at the Lowy Institute, an independent international policy think tank located in Sydney.

Remittances contribute significantly to GDP of the Pacific Islands region. However, currently, this region suffers from the highest transaction fees in the world.

The inability to reduce remittance costs to at least the global average level indicates that the current financial system can't cope with the challenges in certain financial corridors. The digitalization of remittances has the tools to dramatically reduce these fees. We can expect that the mass adoption of digital assets in remittances will begin there.