Cryptocurrency Index fund creator ICONOMI is slowly building a bridge for everyday users to venture into the world of crypto investing.
On May 31st, COO Matej Tomazin announced via an official company blog post that ICONOMI would be introducing a fiat ramp-up service on their platform. The ramp up will come in 2 stages: over the counter (OTC) deals and direct deposits. In the announcement, Tomazin writes:
Offering a comprehensive set of tools to allow anyone to enter and explore the crypto-economy breaks down the barriers to entry and will expand ICONOMI’s reach even further.
OTC Deals
Eligible users will be able to make deals with ICONOMI to acquire cryptocurrency assets in exchange for depositing fiat money from their bank accounts. Investors will not be directly purchasing the cryptocurrencies from an exchange. Rather, they will send their money to ICONOMI, who will act as an intermediary for purchasing Bitcoin and Ether and placing it into the investors’ ICONOMI accounts.
This first stage will roll out in phases, initially only allowing access to users who deposit 50 thousand Euros in over the counter deals. Users must pass KYC (know your customer) and AML (anti-money laundering) requirements and must also be verified Tier 2 users before they can deposit funds.
DAA (digital asset array) managers will also benefit from the fiat ramp service by being able to seed funds from investors in Euros.
Direct Deposits
Direct deposit, which is the second stage of the fiat ramp up, is already being implemented. Starting in Europe, access to direct deposit will be rolled out one country at a time. During this stage, Tier 2 verified ICONOMI users in select countries will be able to make direct deposits from their bank account to their ICONOMI account.
Is ICONOMI Really Breaking Down Barriers?
Although these new announcements sound promising, the number of restrictions in place for “anyone to enter” and take advantage of OTC and direct deposit deals is rather ironic. If anything, some could argue that by setting a 50 thousand Euro minimum requirement, ICONOMI is not breaking down any barriers at all, but simply repeating the pattern of Wall Street investment funds in further restricting everyday people from reaping the benefits of a new and fast-growing asset class.
To ICONOMI’s credit, they may just be trying to steer of the SEC’s radar at least until official regulations on cryptocurrency investing have been implemented.
In any case, it’ll be interesting to see how the company plans to open the doors for the real everyday users to take advantage of their fiat ramp up service.
What do you think the minimum requirements should be to gain early access to ICONOMI’s fiat ramp up service? Share your thoughts in the comments section below!
Images courtesy of ICONOMI, Shutterstock
