The Berlin startup Bitwala has received the largest investment in the German crypto industry to date. With this help, it should set up the world’s first bank account that holds both euros and bitcoins.
The phoenix rising from the ashes should be a fitting image for Bitwala. With 4 million euros, the Berlin startup has made the largest investment in the German cryptocurrency industry to date. The round was chaired by Earlybird and Coparison, who both have great confidence that Bitwala will achieve its lofty goals. The startup from Berlin has already been supported by the High-Tech Gründerfonds (HTGF), the Digital Currency Group (DCG) and ALSTIN.
For Bitwala this should be the highlight of an exciting year. In the spring, Bitwala lost its partner bank and had to stop its core business – the acceptance of Bitcoins in order to pay bills in euros. After WaveCrest decided to stop issuing prepaid VISA cards as a Bitcoin company, this line of business also dropped out. What remained was an online wallet and many plans.
Bitwala now wants to become the first “blockchain bank” that brings euros and bitcoin into a traditional, regulated, deposit-protected bank account. This is also to be combined with an ICO, in which investors can receive shares in the company. If you have to restart, do it right.
With these grand plans, Bitwala seems to be on the right track.The partnership with a new bank is in place, 12 new employees have been hired, 30,000 customers are already waiting for the account, and the launch is planned for November. According to news on August 30th, Bitwala is “in the final phase of development. We have started to test the infrastructure, trading systems and other products while we are climbing the last hurdles on the regulatory and legal side. ”
So it looks like Bitwala will actually be one after in November Offer a bank account regulated under German law, which in addition to the normal functions – transfers, standing orders, cash payments – also supports crypto currencies. It would be a world first.