Crypto-To-Fiat Onramps Are Becoming A Thing For Decentralized Exchanges (DEXs)
(Photo : Tamim Tarin from Pixabay )

Cryptocurrencies, and their underlying blockchain technology, have grown into one of the most promising industries in the world today. Standing at $3 trillion in market capitalization, the crypto market has witnessed an explosive growth in the number of assets, currently in the thousands, as new projects and users emerge from the shadows every day. While some are scams, others have built use cases around them, welcoming enterprises, organizations, and governments who use them as investment platforms. Despite the endless possibilities and use cases, the cryptocurrency industry has suffered from one specific issue from the launch of Bitcoin about 13 years ago - the barrier of entry.

Since Bitcoin's launch, the barrier of entry for new users has been quite high as they find it rather challenging to purchase crypto assets.  Explaining how wallets, exchanges, tokens, and various solutions work to any beginner would make their heads spin. Due to this, project teams have worked tirelessly to make cryptocurrencies accessible and easy to use for anyone to boost the adoption rates of crypto.

One of the coolest inventions in the space yet is crypto to fiat on-ramps that are designed to bridge the traditional finance world to the digital asset world. These on-ramps offer users an easy, secure, and fast way to exchange their fiat currencies to crypto, and vice versa. Simply put, these solutions enabled new users to join the crypto bandwagon easily using their "everyday cash".

With the demand for cryptocurrencies at an all-time high, evidenced by celebrities and athletes purchasing digital assets, the need for on-ramps is crucial for the continuity of the crypto ecosystem.

A dance with traditional finance

The traditional finance world is finally hopping onto the crypto train to help investors purchase crypto more easily. Despite the constant talk of cryptocurrencies replacing traditional finance, the two industries have a symbiotic relationship built upon facilitating payments. Over the past few years, several traditional finance companies have started accepting crypto purchases to facilitate investors' need to own digital assets.

In August, Coinbase (the largest crypto exchange in the U.S.) announced the introduction of Apple Pay as a payment option when purchasing crypto assets. This followed its move in June 2021 to support Apple Pay on its Coinbase card. This means that Apple Pay users who have linked their VISA or MasterCard can buy cryptocurrencies directly on Coinbase.

Notwithstanding, PayPal introduced crypto on its platform allowing users to purchase Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, and other cryptocurrencies using their PayPal balance. PayPal enables users to invest as little as $1 in bitcoin using their existing account.

Binance, Coinbase, and other first-class centralized crypto exchanges have integrated various payment methods including bank transfers, credit/debit card payments, wire transfers, M-Pesa, PayPal, Apple Pay, and others to allow users to convert their fiat to crypto. Without these onramps, exchanges, and wallets have to send users away to buy crypto elsewhere and hope that they transfer the crypto to their platform.

A DEX onramp revolution?

Despite the advantages of having fiat-to-crypto payments on centralized exchanges, users are still faced with the challenge of owning their private keys. Once a user buys crypto on a centralized exchange, they own the crypto but technically do not have it under their control. In case the centralized exchange is hacked, the users could lose their assets.

Consequently, most users are gradually switching to non-custodial exchanges and wallets to have more control of their assets. However, joining the decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem is a challenge as most platforms only accept cryptocurrency deposits. This creates a barrier for users who only have fiat money - locking them out from the ecosystem.

To solve this issue, Pangolin, an Avalanche-based decentralized exchange (DEX) is introducing Apple Pay on-ramps. This allows users to directly and easily buy cryptocurrencies on the platform using their Apple Pay cards. As a first of its kind, Pangolin allows users to purchase cryptocurrencies using VISA, MasterCard, and Apple debit cards straight into their non-custodial wallets.

This gives a new meaning to DeFi, as millions of users are introduced to the wonders and innovations present in the DeFi ecosystem. The platform removes the complexities and reduces the fees involved in purchasing crypto assets and transferring them to a decentralized exchange.

Additionally, using a DEX to purchase crypto ensures the non-censorship of payments and breaks the geographical barriers allowing anyone to purchase crypto at will. Finally, as DEXs embrace providing fiat to crypto onramps, many bankless users will be financially empowered through DeFi. These platforms will provide users with a plethora of features to invest in including staking, farming, and minting of NFTs.

Future of crypto onramps and DeFi

Over the past year, investors have moved over 100,000 BTC off centralized exchanges as they search for better security and privacy in their crypto transactions. To give investors a full view of the DeFi world, DEXs need to provide users with easy ways to purchase crypto using already existing payment methods such as Apple Pay. Introducing cheap, fast, and convenient crypto onramps will boost the adoption of crypto and extend the growth of the DeFi ecosystem.

Being able to directly go to a decentralized exchange and buy Bitcoin (BTC), or a crypto asset of your choice, with a debit, credit, or Apple card makes the world of crypto and decentralized finance accessible to anyone who is conversant with online shopping.

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