Bitcoin exchange Netagio launches credit, debit card payment options

On Monday, Netagio – a UK-based marketplace for Bitcoin, the British pound, euro, and US dollar – announced new credit and debit card payment options for Netagio trading accounts as part of the company’s strategic expansion plan, making it quicker and easier for institutional and retailer investors to purchase, sell, and trade Bitcoin with the pound, dollar, and euro.

The company said in a press release that customers from the 114 nations in which Netagio operates are able to deposit funds using their Visa, Visa Electron, Visa Debit, MasterCard, MasterCard Debit, or Maestro cards and trade them against Bitcoin at any time, instantly. Netagio said the credit and debit card payment options provide its customers with an additional choice to fund their trading accounts quickly and easily, serving as an alternative to traditional banking deposits that are subject to one- to three-day processing times and international banking fees.

The new payment options are enabled through Netagio’s recently announced partnership with payment services provider WalPay, based in the Isle of Man. Netagio said the partnership helped secure robust banking relationships for the company, allowing its customers to deposit funds and receive international payments.

Netagio said the options further enhance its strategic decision to launch US dollar and euro order books last month in response to customer demand.

The company said in the press release that it takes a rigorous approach to operational controls and compliance, particularly in the area of anti-money laundering and Know Your Customer requirements. Netagio said it is the first Bitcoin company to be independently audited and receive an ISAE (International Standard on Assurance Engagements) 3000 standard for the safety and security of its Bitcoin storage, which is free of charge.

In an interview with Banking Technology, Netagio CEO Simon Hamblin said the collapse of Mt. Gox and the seizure and shut-down of online black market bazaar Silk Road have spurred other cryptocurrency companies to demonstrate they are legitimate and above board.

“We try to demonstrate we are real,” Hamblin said to Banking Technology. “You never saw the people behind Mt. Gox, they never appeared in public. We are real, we have a phone number. Many of the others don’t. We are also audited by an independent accounting firm. What are the other exchanges doing to prove that they are real?”

Hamblin added that “it’s also important that we have the Bitcoins we say we have, and that we have access to them, and that the right people in the business have that access.”

Image via Netagio’s press release