The last couple of years have seen Fintech companies soar – especially those that are challenging traditional banks in areas of weakness. One such company is Remitsy – who utilise blockchain technology to make paying Chinese suppliers cheaper for businesses.
Remitsy was founded in April 2015 by Richard Bensberg, a businessman tired of making international payments which were both costly and time-consuming. Remitsy has identified a key area where banks just aren’t coming up to scratch; charging between 3 – 8 percent for transfers and taking up to five working days, banks are using old technology and run an expensive service. By matching sellers and buyers of bitcoin and facilitating a ‘swap’, Remitsy can save around businesses around 80 percent, and complete each payment within as little as 6 hours.
- Richard Bensberg, Remitsy CEO
Remitsy is one of several Fintech companies tackling areas where banks are weak – their inability to react quickly to new technology has meant they are failing in an increasingly competitive market, with new companies such as TransferWise undercutting banks to become consumers’ first port of call for payments. Combined with the public’s general lack of trust in overpaid bankers, banks are in danger of losing out – so where does the future of business finance lie?
Remitsy’s CEO Richard Bensberg says: “New solutions are now helping businesses catch up using the open-source and scalable power of the blockchain. Banks have been doing international settlement much the same way since 1971 – and even where they have leveraged new technology to improve their products, as a user it often feels clumsily crowbarred into legacy systems. Whilst it is clear that banks now see the potential of the blockchain, I think we’ll continue to see the most cutting edge implementations coming from leaner fintech companies.”
He continues: “That being said, banks are more than the sum of their technology, and we are not looking to replace the bank…but we have all heard that software is eating the world, and I see payments as the banks’ bread and butter. And we are hungry!”
Miranda Wadham on 11/01/2016