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A fintech firm that operates a crypto wallet and payment platform – and relocated to Jersey last year – has launched a new 'Digital Pound' which it's hoping will prove popular among island businesses and their customers.
Moneybrain founder Lee Birkett was invited to speak on the panel at Digital Jersey's Transforming Finance in the Digital Age event at the Royal Yacht last week, and said that Jersey has an opportunity to get on the "super highway of money".
The crypto wallet and payment platform offered by the company can be accessed through an app, where – among other services – users can purchase 'BiPS' tokens to then buy and trade digital currencies.
Pictured: An example of purchasing some Digital Pounds with the BiPS currency.
Mr Birkett explained that the Digital Pound his company had launched, which is among the digital assets that can be bought via the app, was a form of stablecoin.
This differs from volatile cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin, as a stablecoin's value can be tied to an asset such as a fiat currency or commodity.
Users can send Digital Pounds to each other, or buy products in any island store that opens a free Moneybrain Business Account, by utilising a QR code.
Watch: Moneybrain has launched a 'Digital Pound' in the island.
According to Moneybrain, this enables businesses and customers to swerve "excessive" card reader fees and enjoy faster payments.
Mr Birkett noted that users of the app also benefit from an exchange fee on their transactions of just £0.01 of their 'BiPS' tokens.
He described the digital pound as "a better, more efficient pound", arguing that local businesses have traditionally been "paying a fortune" in card fees.
Pictured: The Digital Pound is a stablecoin that can be purchased using the Moneybrain app's native 'BiPS' currency.
Mr Birkett added: "People can have an account with us, they can save with us, they can borrow with us, but more importantly for the Jersey economy they can have a payment where it only costs them a penny to pay eachother."
Digital Jersey CEO Tony Moretta noted that the organisation had helped Moneybrain to relocate to the island in 2023.
"Our role is both to support local companies in Jersey – we have a lot of really successful local fintechs – but we want to attract them as well," he said.
"In the same way that financial service has in the past been attracting new trust companies, new funds, new law firms, new banks – we are attracting new fintechs because that's the future of the finance industry."
Pictured - left to right: Digital Jersey CEO Tony Moretta and Moneybrain CEO Lee Birkett.
Mr Moretta added that the island's conversation around cryptocurrencies had "moved on" since he came to Jersey around a decade ago.
He said: "People [then] were talking about using Bitcoin to buy pizza – you'd probably be a bit sick if you looked back and you'd spent your Bitcoin buying some pizzas."
Video: Mr Birkett speaking about Moneybrain's move to Jersey with the help of Digital Jersey.
He continued: "Having a stablecoin is yet another payment opportunity in Jersey.
"If you look at some of the challenges Jersey has with sometimes getting a hold of credit cards, sometimes accepting different types of payments, the more options that we have the better."
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