26
d'Octubre
de
2016
Act.
26
d'Octubre
de
2016
If the mobile has just about become an essential tool, we will soon be able to dispense with the "just about" and state that it is entirely necessary for our everyday lives. It allows us to call, take photographs, make notes, browse the web... and, if that wasn't enough, it now also allows us to transfer money to our contacts. Well, not the device itself, but rather a mobile app, in this case Verse.
This app created by three young entrepreneurs based in Barcelona came on the market eight months ago. Yet in that short time, they have managed to complete two funding rounds for over 10 million dollars from leading investors in the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Silicon Valley. "In the last transaction we raised 8.3 million dollars," says Àlex Lopera, one of the founding partners, who mentions the participation of Greycroft Partners, eVentures and Spark Capital – "investor in Twitter and Oculus". They also took part in the first edition of the Menorca Millennials deceleration programme.
Adapting to the 21st century
Although the company is registered in North America, it is based in Barcelona and has a dozen employees. They are already present in 16 European countries, but are not considering entering the American market despite the contacts and investors they have a relationship with there due to the time they have spent in the continent.
They have had links with Silicon Valley since they took part in the FinTech and virtual reality accelerator of BoostVC, where they worked for three months at the beginning of 2015 to develop software for their half-finished product that would be launched a year later. "At that time we were working with a platform to be made up of 17,000 cashpoint machines to sell Bitcoins and take out cash," says Lopera.
On returning to Spain, the idea changed and became Verse. The reason, according to its founder, was based on their own experience. "We began to analyse the data and the tool, and we saw that there was a bigger opportunity to develop a mobile solution to help payments between friends, who are constantly owing and paying each other." And if there is one thing that Lopera is clear about it is that bank transfers "continue to be slow" and that the user's experience "is not what someone in the 21st century would expect." The result? Verse, a tool that does cover these needs. It is a tool that, as the entrepreneur says, aims to be "the WhatsApp of payments."
The future of blockchain
Security is one of the startup's main concerns, which is why the team includes former employees from pioneering internet companies like Google or Twitter. However, what ensures that there can be no type of fraud with the app is the fact that it is based on blockchain technology and all the information is encrypted.
If the most sceptical still have doubts, Lopera points out that it is a "highly regulated" industry. "The Bank of Spain obliges us to have everything completely registered, which means the rate of fraud is just about zero. There is almost no one who has lost all their money," he insists.
To this must be added the fact that the founders all have experience in the use of Bitcoin. Lopera and Borja Rossell headed BTC Point, a startup that created cashpoint machines for coins but which is no longer in operation. The other partner, Dario Nieuwenhuis, has experience at Google, where he worked before setting up Verse.
Guanyar-se el client millennial
They cannot talk about numbers of users or revenue, because the figures are not yet significant compared with the objectives they have set. They charge between 1.5% and 2% of currency exchange transactions, a small margin but one that allows them to keep going and "grow the user base," something that Lopera identifies as the main aim.
But they are young and ambitious, and their idea is to become the leading payment platform in Europe among Millennials. They know that the competition will grow, and is already strong, a reality that does not discourage them. "Our transactions are instant, they are not slow like in banks," points out the founder, "and we continue to work night and day to offer the best service to our users." That is precisely what is in their favour, "the response to the challenges of the market from the competition is slower."
This app created by three young entrepreneurs based in Barcelona came on the market eight months ago. Yet in that short time, they have managed to complete two funding rounds for over 10 million dollars from leading investors in the entrepreneurial ecosystem of Silicon Valley. "In the last transaction we raised 8.3 million dollars," says Àlex Lopera, one of the founding partners, who mentions the participation of Greycroft Partners, eVentures and Spark Capital – "investor in Twitter and Oculus". They also took part in the first edition of the Menorca Millennials deceleration programme.
Adapting to the 21st century
Although the company is registered in North America, it is based in Barcelona and has a dozen employees. They are already present in 16 European countries, but are not considering entering the American market despite the contacts and investors they have a relationship with there due to the time they have spent in the continent.
They have had links with Silicon Valley since they took part in the FinTech and virtual reality accelerator of BoostVC, where they worked for three months at the beginning of 2015 to develop software for their half-finished product that would be launched a year later. "At that time we were working with a platform to be made up of 17,000 cashpoint machines to sell Bitcoins and take out cash," says Lopera.
On returning to Spain, the idea changed and became Verse. The reason, according to its founder, was based on their own experience. "We began to analyse the data and the tool, and we saw that there was a bigger opportunity to develop a mobile solution to help payments between friends, who are constantly owing and paying each other." And if there is one thing that Lopera is clear about it is that bank transfers "continue to be slow" and that the user's experience "is not what someone in the 21st century would expect." The result? Verse, a tool that does cover these needs. It is a tool that, as the entrepreneur says, aims to be "the WhatsApp of payments."
The future of blockchain
Security is one of the startup's main concerns, which is why the team includes former employees from pioneering internet companies like Google or Twitter. However, what ensures that there can be no type of fraud with the app is the fact that it is based on blockchain technology and all the information is encrypted.
If the most sceptical still have doubts, Lopera points out that it is a "highly regulated" industry. "The Bank of Spain obliges us to have everything completely registered, which means the rate of fraud is just about zero. There is almost no one who has lost all their money," he insists.
To this must be added the fact that the founders all have experience in the use of Bitcoin. Lopera and Borja Rossell headed BTC Point, a startup that created cashpoint machines for coins but which is no longer in operation. The other partner, Dario Nieuwenhuis, has experience at Google, where he worked before setting up Verse.
Guanyar-se el client millennial
They cannot talk about numbers of users or revenue, because the figures are not yet significant compared with the objectives they have set. They charge between 1.5% and 2% of currency exchange transactions, a small margin but one that allows them to keep going and "grow the user base," something that Lopera identifies as the main aim.
But they are young and ambitious, and their idea is to become the leading payment platform in Europe among Millennials. They know that the competition will grow, and is already strong, a reality that does not discourage them. "Our transactions are instant, they are not slow like in banks," points out the founder, "and we continue to work night and day to offer the best service to our users." That is precisely what is in their favour, "the response to the challenges of the market from the competition is slower."