February 22, 2022: hi, the crypto exchange upstart and mobile banking platform, has today announced a strategic agreement with Contis, a leading Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) provider in Europe. The partnership with Contis – who count Visa and MasterCard amongst their network of partners – means that later this year, eligible hi members will be able to seamlessly spend their digital assets at over 60 million merchants, using a hi Debit Card.
Supporting hi’s mission to build the world’s most user-friendly and functional crypto and fiat platform, this partnership will not only enable hi’s 3 million strong community to use cryptocurrencies to make payments using the hi Debit Card, but also provide eligible members with their personal IBAN accounts for a seamless on/off-ramp.
Contis, Europe’s most comprehensive banking-as-a-service platform, already partners with some of the world’s largest cryptocurrency and blockchain companies. With unique technology provided by Contis, hi not only removes the need to liquidate assets before spending and allows for any digital assets in a hi account to be converted automatically to fiat at point-of-sale, but will also come with Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) functionality that allows members to decide on exactly when their digital assets get converted.
Sean Rach, co-founder of hi, commented: “Our goal is to overcome one of the most significant challenges in the market today – making it simple and seamless for people to spend crypto. Thanks to Contis, we are delighted to be at the forefront of innovation in payments and look forward to rolling our cards out to eligible hi members, starting with Europe later this year.”
Contis Managing Director Lee Johnstone said:“As the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrency pushes forward, we are constantly seeking new ways to make payments more convenient to more people. We are delighted to be partnering with hi to deliver their customers a new debit card service. hi are quickly proving themselves to be a leading global player in the crypto and blockchain space with a unique proposition that is making the utility of crypto frictionless.”
In support of hi’s ambition to provide a simple and exceptional user experience regarding both fiat on and off ramps, this announcement follows the recent introduction of exchange and asset conversion functionalities on the hi platform, as well as deposit by bank transfer. Furthermore, the hi app has been downloaded by over 1.5 million users across the Apple App Store and Google Play, less than three months after launch.
About Contis
Contis was founded with the vision to better people’s lives by powering the digital payments revolution. Contis has grown to become one of the most comprehensive banking-as-a-service platforms in Europe which is revolutionising the payments system. The Contis platform delivers account, cards, and payments services which are supported by Visa and Mastercard payment networks with offices in the UK, Lithuania and India – and recently announced a merger with Berlin-based Solarisbank to become Europe’s undisputed leader in Banking-as-a-Service. Connect and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter or our website.
About hi
hi is leveraging blockchain technology to build the world’s most user-friendly and functional crypto & fiat app. The app combines the functionality of a crypto exchange with a next-generation digital banking platform, providing members with an all-in-one service for savings, investments, payments, and lifestyle benefits. Over 3.3 million people have signed up for hi and the hi App has been downloaded over 1.5 million times. Engage with us on Social: on Telegram, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn or our website – hi.com.