A new way to purchase Bitcoin and altcoins is coming to the UK market — and it’s called Coinerz. The platform allows anyone from the United Kingdom to use their credit card to buy various kinds of cryptocurrency. A list of digital currencies the creators say will keep growing. Bitcoinist got together with James Malach, CTO of the team, and chatted with him about the project. Malach has over 20 years of experience in the field of online technology as well as being part of management teams that have raised 20m in venture funding. The entrepreneur gives us a little preview of what’s to come on November 30th and some background about the business.
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“We want to make digital currency accessible to everyone. If you go on holiday, you exchange your money at a bureau de change, you don’t tend to play the currency markets, so why should digital currency be any different?”— James Malach CTO, Coinerz
Bitcoinist: Can you tell our readers what Coinerz is?
James Malach (JM): Coinerz is one of the easiest ways to buy Bitcoin and altcoins in the UK using your credit or debit card. It’s perfect for newbies who want to dip their toe in the water without having to worry about understanding the markets and it’s also great for buyers who wish to pay directly in GBP sterling.
Bitcoinist: How many people are on this team?
JM: As well as a small team of developers, the core management team consists of myself and Eric Hobson.
Bitcoinist: What gave you the idea to add a feature that enables people to buy Alts and Bitcoin to Coinerz?
JM: We want to make digital currency accessible to everyone. If you go on holiday, you exchange your money at a bureau de change, you don’t tend to play the currency markets, so why should digital currency be any different?
Bitcoinist: How does the system work?
JM: It’s really simple. Just select the currency you’re interested from the growing list and enter an amount for an instant quote. We also provide historical price graphs so you can check the performance of each coin before you buy.
Bitcoinist: What’s the level of security using your platform?
JM: We use industry-standard SSL encryption on the site, but any sensitive customer data is actually handled by our secure payment provider.
Bitcoinist: Is this service offered globally or restricted to certain areas?
JM: At the moment, we’re UK based, but we’re shortly going to be available in several countries across Europe. The systems are built; it’s just a case of making sure we comply with regulations.
Bitcoinist: When do you plan to launch this?
JM: We carried out a ‘Soft Launch’ market test last year and will carry out the full launch incorporating the new debit/credit card payment facility this Monday, November 30 2015.
Bitcoinist: After this release what can we expect from Coinerz in the future?
JM: We’re shortly launching a Buzzfeed-style site that lets people watch videos and tip them as easily as tipping a waiter. The site uses the Horizon (HZ) blockchain and will hopefully introduce digital currency to a whole new market segment. We’ve already got over 100 performers, comedians and musicians and will be launching with several hundred videos.
Thanks, James, for chatting with us and good luck with your endeavors. The more platforms available that offer cryptocurrency to purchase, the better it is for accessibility.
What do you think of Coinerz new feature? Let us know in the comments below!
Images courtesy of Coinerz
