Adaverse, a Cardano ecosystem accelerator in Africa backed by EMURGO Africa with a mission to scale Web3 projects on the Cardano blockchain, has announced an investment in BoundlessPay, a digital banking platform simplifying cross-border transactions for Africans and Diasporan Africans.

Q&A with BoundlessPay CEO Franklin Peters

Q: Tell us about BoundlessPay.

Peters: BoundlessPay is a global digital banking app for cross-border collections, payments, and settlements that utilizes blockchain to solve remittance and payment problems. I have a background in computer science and in 2021, I decided to start BoundlessPay. Our mission is to interconnect Africans to digitally-driven global e-commerce, leveraging Web3 technology to build an affordable, fast, and easy-to-use payment platform.

Q: How does BoundlessPay operate?

Peters: BoundlessPay is accessible as a mobile and web application that enables everyone anywhere to send, receive, exchange, and swap currencies easily. The platform operates on USD-pegged stablecoins like USDT and Cardano USDA as an alternative way to store and spend money locally and globally and users can access virtual USD cards and virtual fiat accounts, and easily on-ramp and off-ramp within seconds.

Q: What are the prevalent challenges BoundlessPay aims to tackle?

Peters: Having identified the economic wave of consumption across continents and the interconnectivity of eCommerce globally, BoundlessPay is positioned as a bridge for Africans to access opportunities beyond her shores. In Africa, currency depreciation and inflation are at an all-time high. There is a palpable fear of wealth storage in local fiat currencies, while the number of unbanked and underbanked continues to grow. Africans are massively exiting their local fiat currencies into stronger currencies such as USD and GBP and stablecoins to protect their assets and resources.

Q: Why is blockchain a necessity for BoundlessPay services?

Peters: By building on Web3 tools, BoundlessPay eliminates cross-border barriers, allowing anyone, anywhere, to access a trusted multi-currency wallet, with value-added services like utility bill payments and currency swaps. Having experienced disappointment with similar Web2 cross-border platforms stunted by unfavourable government regulations, BoundlessPay has set out to offer a Web3 platform that is free of hassles and highly secure. By fostering strategic partnerships with global organisations, BoundlessPay gives users better international money transfers and instant settlement options.

Despite the growing use of fintech apps and the wide adoption of mobile money platforms, the interoperability hurdle for a cross-border settlement still plagues the African economic structures due to restrictive regulations. The process of obtaining foreign currencies and opening accounts for foreign transactions in Africa is heavily regulated with stringent requirements that cannot be met by the middle and low-income earners seeking alternatives to their devaluing fiat currencies. Therefore, to break these barriers, BoundlessPay provides trusted and instant FOREX services available to all including the underbanked.