Bitwala, a blockchain banking service based in Germany, announced today closing a funding round of more than €4 million led by Earlybird Venture Capital to finally launch its German regulated blockchain bank service. The open date is planned for November, 2018.
In addition to Earlybird Venture Capital, Bitwala welcomed Coparion GmbH & Co. KG to its family of investors. The new investment will be used for product development and growth.
For over a year, together with their banking partner, Bitwala has planned this expansion of service.
Until late 2017, Bitwala operated as a hub for worldwide money transfers using blockchain as a vehicle. Previously, the company processed almost 100 million euros in transaction volume for their 80,000 customers, but the service had to be suspended due to sudden license removal of their card issuing partner in late 2017.
More than 30,000 people already signed up to be among the first to be onboarded. The account will combine all the features and convenience needed for everyday banking in both the traditional and in the crypto world.
Users will benefit from a German bank account, provided with Bitwala’s banking partner, which offers SEPA debit and credit transactions, easy management of recurring payments and a debit card. For instance, customers will be able to use their Bitwala account to receive salary payments and pay their rent. Furthermore, a cryptocurrency wallet with exchange function is integrated into the account.
“The cryptocurrency community is eagerly awaiting the launch of our new service. I’m very proud that with our new product we will close the gap between crypto and traditional banking and solve one of the biggest hurdles on the road to mainstream adoption.”
Christian Nagel, partner at Earlybird, comments: “The background and experience of the team convinced us that Bitwala will allow everyone to engage with cryptocurrencies – seamlessly and in unprecedented simplicity, with all the comfort and security of their bank account.”
With the new product offering, deposits in current accounts will be protected up to 100,000 euros under the German deposit protection scheme and supervised by Germany’s banking supervisors BaFin and Bundesbank.