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Global payments infrastructure provider Mercuryo has reported substantial growth in global digital token payments and services as a stratospheric rise in the Bitcoin price only adds momentum to the fast evolution of the underlying architecture of the space.
Bitcoin has once again captured the imagination of the public as the world’s biggest cryptocurrency surged past its record high of $69,000 after 846 days.
While price action in the trading of Bitcoin makes the headlines, a dazzling array of payment infrastructure projects are quietly being built as the space evolves to meet the needs of a new generation that is increasingly comfortable seamlessly switching between crypto and fiat services. The provision of on and off-ramp services is the fabric that melds the legacy fiat world and the emerging digital token economy.
‘Buy Bitcoin’
As newcomers pour into the space, the ‘buy Bitcoin’ and ‘buy crypto’ features have become essential tools among leading participants such as centralised exchanges, non-custodial wallet providers and Decentralised Exchanges (DEXs). To this end, Mercuryo is leading the charge in the evolution of the space as the payment infrastructure provider over the past year secured a series of high-profile strategic partnerships.
Notably, Mercuryo has partnered with MetaMask, the leading non-custodial wallet, enabling purchases of up to €699 to be done immediately. The solution also enables users to make purchases directly within the MetaMask wallet using credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay and a variety of local payment methods.
Mercuryo has in 2023 also partnered with Ledger, the hardware wallet maker, Jupiter, the leading DEX liquidity aggregator on Solana, Pancakeswap, the leading DEX on the BNB Chain, along with cryptocurrency exchanges, Poloniex, BingX, Phemex and BTSE. Mercuryo is also making waves in the nascent Web3 gaming space, and last year announced partnerships with Wemade, a South Korean Web3 game developer, and IntellaX, a Web3 gaming platform.
Cementing partnerships across the cryptocurrency space has enabled Mercuryo to achieve a 136% boost in raw profitability in 2023. Latin America has witnessed a 27-fold growth, North America a 12-fold growth and Europe a 7-fold growth, spearheaded by a proliferation of on-ramp services across the globe.
“The launch of the Bitcoin ETF and subsequent rally in the cryptocurrency market that has seen Bitcoin surge to a record high has reawakened interest in crypto among the masses and captured the imagination,” said Petr Kozyakov, CEO and Co-Founder of Mercuryo. “Our position as a company at the very intersection of digital token services and payments enables us to see emerging trends in the use of crypto as the space evolves beneath the surface headlines. More and more people across the globe are pressing the ‘buy Bitcoin’ on-ramp button.”
Global adoption of cryptocurrency as a means of payment is on the rise as more nations embrace crypto and the digital financial revolution. Notably, in 2023, Mercuryo integrated with the Brazilian instant payment platform PIX as the provision of cryptocurrency services helps enhance levels of financial inclusion in Latin America.
The unbanked
“Developing markets, as often, play a crucial role in driving crypto trends, with the US and UK markets attempting to keep pace,” added Kozyakov. “So, we’re up for some exciting industry developments, and Mercuryo will be at the forefront.”
Today, 2 billion adults, or 38 percent of all adults worldwide, remain excluded from the financial system today, according to research by the World Bank. The vast majority of the unbanked live in developing economies, where 46 percent of adults do not have a bank account. Providing access to on and off-ramp services enables the unbanked to obtain access to financial services such as P2P payments and cross border payments.
