Banking the Unbanked: Nebeus Crypto Bank Kicks off $1.45 Million Crowdfund Campaign

London-based crypto platform, Nebeus has announced the launch of a crowdfunding campaign in pursuit of its goal to bank the unbanked around the world.

The campaign which went live on Sept. 24, 2018, and supported by industry expert, Brett King, is set to raise 1.1 million pounds ($1.45 million) by October 23, 2018.

Speaking about their goals, Konstantin Zaripov, co-founder and CEO of Nebeus, said they want to create an ecosystem where those who add value are rewarded, and those who consume services and products can do so in a competitive and secure environment, built on blockchain technology. He said their current campaign will bring them a step closer to achieving this.

Already, Nebeus has footprints in at least 45 countries and are looking to expand into more countries in Asia, South America and Europe. But the company says it seeks to make banking simpler and encourage an increased use of cryptocurrency.

The company wants to make banking simple for people and encourage a wider use of cryptocurrency in everyday spending including making online and offline transactions possible.

To do this, Nebeus operates as a crypto bank that processes crypto-collateral Bitcoin loans globally and boasts a 30,000 active user base. It has a peer-to-peer (p2p) exchange platform that was launched at the end of 2017. So far, the company said they have processed transactions to the tune of 34 million euro ($39.9 million) and facilitated 1.9 million pounds ($2.23 million) in p2p Bitcoin loans.

Nebeus has since announced its expansion moves in Africa and hopes to cash in on the rising number of cryptocurrency users in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Africa, Nigeria and Ghana. It said users in those countries now have access to its startup’s “crypto bank”.

The company expects to aid over 400 million people with crypto services through help of local partners that already have an established network in the region to further drive financial inclusion powered by mobile money.

The World Bank had announced that there are 1.7 billion adults globally who remain unbanked, yet two-thirds of them own a mobile phone that they could use for online banking. In Europe and Central Asia account ownership was 65 percent in 2017 (58 percent of adults in 2014) and 71 percent in East Asia and the Pacific.

Nebeus say its crowdfunding campaign will provide the need funds to take its services to these regions and reach more unbanked adults.