Next generation banking tools for the blockchain economy: Bitwala

Programme(s)
H2020-EU.3. - PRIORITY 'Societal challenges
H2020-EU.2.3. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Innovation In SMEs
H2020-EU.2.1. - INDUSTRIAL LEADERSHIP - Leadership in enabling and industrial technologies

Topic(s): EIC-SMEInst-2018-2020 - SME instrument

Call for proposal: H2020-SMEInst-2018-2020-1

Funding Scheme: SME-1 - SME instrument phase 1

Grant agreement ID: 854346

Project description
Novel banking solution to reach new blockchain technology heights in Europe
European start-ups seeking to innovate in the booming cryptocurrency economy are being held back by the conventional banking industry. To address this issue, the German fintech company Bitwala delivered an innovative crypto banking platform that merges traditional and digital assets for the first time. The EU-funded Bitwala project aims to take the business banking solution one step further. It will assess existing customer needs and concerns, examine potential market size, create a viable product development road map and validate the intellectual property protection strategy. European businesses will gain access to infrastructure required to start using cryptocurrencies. Customers will enter the blockchain economy in a safe and regulated manner.

Objective
The cryptocurrency-economy is soaring and industries in multiple countries around the world are emerging to offer businesses and individuals the services they need to make the most out of this new financial frontier.
To put things in context, in March 2018, over $6.2 billion in Bitcoin was exchanged, an increase of 17.6x compared to the previous year, while in April 2018 the Chinese authorities announced a €1.3 billion fund for blockchain innovation.
European startups are striving to lead this innovation as well: Bitwala is a German fintech company that has built a first-of-its-kind next generation bank account with crypto features. We bridge the gap between the crypto and fiat currency worlds by offering customers a fully licensed bank account with blockchain and cryptocurrency functions.
European businesses will benefit by having access to the necessary infrastructure needed to start using cryptocurrencies to optimize their cross-border money transfers, explore different financial instruments and pave the way to start offering additional services to their customers.
This also benefits European citizens, who have a safe infrastructure to invest in cryptocurrencies through a fully regulated bank account that offers a regular deposit insurance of €100,000 (and in the future a deposit insurance for crypto assets).
In 2014 we founded Safaru B.V a legal entity from which the Bitwala brand operated, transferring over €75 million for 78,000 business and private users from 120 countries around the world until end of 2017. In order to accommodate a shift in regulations, Bitwala pivoted in January 2018 to become a full crypto bank, signing a contract with a German white label bank (solarisBank AG) which provides the necessary legal umbrella.
In 2020 Bitwala plans to offer other cost-effective blockchain-based assets (e.g. real estate, gold, stocks) that are not available to the general public due to high administration costs.