— by Chief Strategist — Financial Technology
Crypto isn't about investment gains; it's about transaction freedom. Why traditional card processors are obsolete rent-seekers.
We hold a controversial view on cryptocurrency: as an investment asset, it has no inherent value. It produces nothing, it earns nothing, and its price is purely speculative. However, as a transactional layer, it is revolutionary.
The true value of crypto lies in its ability to transfer value without authority. It is the currency of choice for "grey" businesses and those who value privacy over permission. Governments are slowly losing their grasp on the global money system. A silent war has started, and while governments may control the on-ramps and off-ramps, crypto will win the battle for peer-to-peer transactions. We foresee a future where we still need banking functions—custody, lending, identity—but we won't necessarily need banks as we know them today.
This brings us to the real villains of the current system: legacy card processors. They are pushing an obsolete model of value transfer. They charge 1-3% on every transaction while offering almost zero value in return. They are rent-seekers on the global economy, slowing down commerce and extracting wealth for merely updating a ledger.
Paying 1% for a digital handshake is theft. Some countries have already realised this and are building national payment rails to bypass these monopolies. Soon, the rest of the world will follow. We believe that card processors should be rejected in favour of direct, low-cost, permissionless rails. The future of money isn't about speculation; it's about freedom from the 1% tax on everything you touch.