I’m on record as being a former user of Quadriga CX back in the day, so this isn’t so much an admission of guilt as it is a restatement of fact. Promise. I got out long before the Cotten died in India—or if you’re the type for conspiracies, disappeared cackling like a maniac millions of dollars richer—so my story is a happy one.
If I had have known that Cotten’s handling of his crypto-assets was so ridiculous and insecure, I wouldn’t have done business there, even for the short time that my money was on the site. But by and large, I preferred the site. It had adequate security, a broad coin reach and favourable rates for shapeshifting. But it was complex, and admittedly, I spent two years with someone we can safely call an expert in cryptocurrency, who sent me YouTube clip after YouTube clip, and properly educated me in most of the tricks and tips I now share with all of you in my Protect Your Neck and Crypto 101 series’.
It took some trial and error, but I figured out how to make it all work for me with my friend’s help. But you may not have a personal guru to help you through the opening stages, and all of those flashing numbers, strange buttons and obscure terminology can get mighty confusing.
That’s where companies like Interlapse Technologies (INLA.V) make their mark.
Interlapse runs coincurve, a site that lets you buy bitcoin and bitcoin cash through interac e-transfer or flexepin in all provinces but Quebec. Compared to the average exchange, it’s a simple, stripped-down interface offering two of the two most popular coins. It requires only a valid Canadian mobile phone number and a wallet address to get started, and the vetting process involves a voice verification system that takes a recording. You also don’t need to worry about your coins after you buy them, because coincurve isn’t an exchange and the coins go straight into your wallet.
The site also gives you the ability to spend bitcoin (and bitcoin cash) to buy gift cards from an array of popular retailers.
Let’s add that October was the best performing month coincurve has ever had with an increase of 72% in daily transactions and an increase of 64% in monthly volume, compared to the average monthly performance from June 19, 2019 to September 30, 2019.
Now they’ve got ideas about expanding overseas and getting involved in the remittances market.
“Remittance is the capital flow between individuals in two different countries, typically by foreign workers to individuals in their home country. According to the World Bank, the total remittance market is comprised of $550B in total flows, 80% of which are within emerging economies.”
Sounds great, doesn’t it?
Yeah. Buckle up and let’s get our calculators out.
This company is being effected by the general malaise of the market in terms of cryptocurrency and blockchain. The winter may be over, but hearts still haven’t thawed. Not entirely. Until that happens, then we’re going to continue to see these types of trends in the market, and one-trick ponies like coincurve aren’t going to make the cut when the time comes.
Why?
A few reasons.
The first and most obvious is that they only trade in CAD, and Canada isn’t a big enough market for sustainable growth. The second is that they charge a flat rate of 5% per transaction with pre-set amounts:
- $20 CAD min. $1000 CAD maximum of BTC and BCH per purchase.
- $20 CAD min. $100-$500 CAD maximum per eGift Card purchase.
- All participating Canadian Banks and Credit Unions.
- Only Canadian Flexepin Vouchers are accepted.
- You can Buy Flexepin Vouchers at these Retail Locations.
In comparison, Binance, the world’s largest exchange charges a flat fee of BTC 0.0005 per withdrawal (and I wouldn’t do business with them for it). So if you purchase and withdraw $1,000 worth of Bitcoin it costs you $0.50. And for that you get more security, more options in terms of coins and fiat, the ability to shapeshift between coins, and running performance data for comparison.
So yes. Coincurve is user-friendly, and even simple to use. And it may be useful in terms of remittance markets.
It may draw attention from the folks who aren’t interested in learning all the highfalutin’ nonsense that comes along with exchanges, but that’s only if we have some wider adoption. Right now, anyone wanting and holding cryptocurrencies tend to be the ones who look at the fine details, see the price-point and compare this with exchanges.
Then go with exchanges.
Frankly, the Starbucks gift card isn’t enough of a draw for me. Sorry not sorry.
—Joseph Morton