Leading payments platform Wirex recently announced that it has achieved over 200% growth in its monthly exchange volume in the APAC region. Wirex lets customers seamlessly buy, hold, exchange and spend 8 cryptocurrencies and 12 traditional currencies using the Wirex app.
Wirex already has 80,000 registered customers in the region. Their data showed that the volume of exchanges between fiat and digital currencies was particularly high in Singapore, Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia, countries in which Wirex enjoys a considerable user base. This trend was reflected by the fact that in May, Wirex recorded the highest volume of transactions in APAC on a single day since it launched in the region in 2019.
The unprecedented social, political and economic circumstances imposed by the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic leads Pavel Matveev, CEO and co-founder of Wirex, to believe that Wirex’s recent growth represents a gradual shift towards a fully-digital economy. “Concerns about what the future may hold have led to more interest in alternative forms of payment. People are looking for easy and safe ways to use and manage their hard-earned money, and digital tokens is one of them.” Google trends in the APAC region also reflect this growing interest in cryptocurrency, as people seek to find out more information about the novel asset class. “Current WHO advice to socially distance and close businesses around the world has also demonstrated the need for a cashless society. Our customers have recognised this by taking advantage of the low-cost, efficient and secure transactional environment that we offer on our platform”, explains Matveev.
Matveev believes that increased regulatory acceptance in the region has encouraged further interest in cryptocurrency. As part of its mission to adhere to local regulatory principles across its entire market, Wirex is working closely with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in order to secure a Payments Service Act licence, and has been granted a temporary exemption to operate without a licence in the meantime. The PSA licence will allow Wirex to continue offering their trusted services in a regulated environment.
The higher volume of exchanges on the Wirex platform was also likely influenced by wider market speculation and fluctuations. Matveev commented that, “other reasons for the recent high volume of exchanges include anticipation of the recent bitcoin halving event, alignment with the traditional equity market, as well as MAS setting the Singdollar to zero appreciation”.
Wirex recently celebrated achieving 3 million customers across 130 countries, and has ambitious plans for expansion across the globe. The platform launches in the US this month and plans to start operations in Japan later this year.
