German blockchain startup Bitwala has launched crypto banking in Germany.After securing €4 million (roughly $4.5 million) from VC firms Earlybird and Coparion in September of 2018 to develop a crypto banking solution, the company has allegedly amassed a waiting list of 30,000 potential users.Bitwala's new banking solution, which it claims was built to "close the gap between crypto and traditional banking,” was developed in partnership with local fintech startup SolarisBank, which has a banking license and is fully regulated by the German financial regulatory authority Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin) and the European Central Bank (ECB).With the launch of this new banking solution, users would be able to manage "both Bitcoin and Euro deposits in one place with the safety and convenience of a German bank account." The accounts would also come with the usual perks that accompany bank accounts like a debit card, as well as a bitcoin wallet with added functionality to swap between bitcoin and the euro freely. “We built the new account putting our customers first. No longer do you have to wire your liquidity to separate exchange accounts with frail fund protection measures outside of Germany. No longer do you have to accept excessive fees for trading. Trading with Bitwala is fast and reliable and our pricing highly competitive,” Bitwala’s chief technical officer and co-founder, Ben Jones, said ...
