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Despite the initial excitement around Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, none have yet achieved widespread, mass adoption as a common currency. Experts note that for any cryptocurrency to truly revolutionize the monetary system, it must prove a clear and objective advantage over traditional currencies when used broadly. While initiatives like Facebook’s Libra aimed to push this transformation, success stories in monetary innovation have more often come from other areas, including mobile money services like Kenya’s M-Pesa and community-based time banks.
In the banking and finance sectors, blockchain and distributed ledger technology (DLT) have seen successful applications such as i2i in the Philippines for financial inclusion, komgo for commodity trade finance, and projects like Khokha and Ubin led by central banks in South Africa and Singapore, respectively. Digital payment systems like Apple Pay, Android Pay, Samsung Pay, and Huawei Pay have simplified contactless payments by linking cards to mobile devices, though they face limitations in card and bank compatibility. Meanwhile, Spain’s Bizum stands out as a powerful instant payment system supported by most Spanish banks, enabling seamless peer-to-peer and online payments directly linked to users’ bank accounts without needing an associated card, and soon, it will support contactless POS payments, potentially surpassing mobile wallet competitors in usability and reach.
Comienza la revolución tecnológica en el mundo monetario, con diversas herramientas que complementan al dinero actual.
To this day, neither Bitcoin nor any other cryptocurrency, have managed to have a massive use. As our experts said in the publication “The Future of Money”, “despite its benefits, for the monetary system to revolutionize, bitcoin (or another cryptocurrency, we add today) needs the opportunity to demonstrate that it has a specific and objective advantage as a generalized currency over traditional currencies.” In it are initiatives such as Facebook’s Libra.
In this publication, success stories such as time banks or M-Pesa (mobile money service originating in Kenya) were analyzed. Regarding DLT platforms and specifically Blockchain, there are success stories in various sectors.
Success stories in the monetary revolution
Specifying in Banking and Finance we can cite some success stories:
– i2i: an initiative to boost financial inclusion in the Philippines.
– komgo: Blockchain for the financing of commodity trading.
– Khokha: Blockchain for the Central Bank of South Africa.
– Ubin: Blockchain for banking in Singapore, led by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
– Securitize: a global solution for the issuance and management of digital assets with blockchain that complies with current regulations.
Regarding other monetary innovations, related to digital money, it is worth mentioning Apple Pay and Android Pay as well as other solutions from manufacturers, such as Samsung Pay and soon, Huawei Pay. These solutions are mobile payment systems that, by associating debit, credit or loyalty cards, can be used in contactless POS. One of the main advantages of these payment systems is the ease of use: simply turn on the screen of the device and bring it closer to the POS, without having to open any app or prepare another element since it opens automatically. The disadvantages; they are not compatible with all cards or with all banks.
Bizum also stands out, a Spanish payment service provider, the result of the collaboration of the vast majority of banks in the country to create a system of instant payments between individuals and purchases in electronic shops. Soon, you will also have the possibility of payment in shops with contactless POS. When it does, it will be a much more powerful solution than Apple Pay or Android Pay for several reasons:
– Allows the sending and receiving of money between individuals and in electronic shops.
– Communicates with the mobile apps of Spanish banks (95% of the market share).
– No associated card needed, as it links directly to the user’s bank account.