Crypterium: A Cryptobank Game Changer

OK. So this time around I decided not to miss the Early Sale of this ICO. I know in my last post I still had some doubts, so I decided to dig a bit deeper and dive into their Bitcointalk Ann thread (https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2214098.0) as well as their telegram group (https://t.me/crypterium). In the end I decided that even if I had some reservations, I would have been kicking myself for not investing on this ICO once their mobile App launched (especially because their Early Sale bonus was pretty good and the minimum purchase was only 1 CRPT at that point). So now, I am the proud owner of a small amount of Crypterium tokens, which by the way are ERC-20 compatible ... and after getting some of my questions answered on the bitcointalk thread I am even more excited I decided to invest (who knows, I might invest a bit more).

For those of you that missed my previous article on this ICO, Crypterium is a mobile Cryptobank that offers a service-payment infrastructure as well as full-fledged banking solutions.
Now, don’t let the word bank scare you cause they are not trying to centralize cryptocurrency in any way, they are just looking into simplifying cryptocurrency transactions, operations, etc. For example, something very exciting about this project is that you won’t need a plastic card. Upon release of their mobile App (Q1, 2018) it will support payment methods such as ApplePay, SamsungPay and AndroidPay through NFC and you will also be able to pay with the App everywhere where contactless payment is available (you just have to set up your payment method in the App as either cryptocurrency or fiat). Even though contactless payment is relatively new in my country (have only seen a few retailers accepting it), and my options might be more limited than yours, I still think this is an excellent move towards cryptocurrency massification, don’t you?

And, as I was exploring the WP in depth, 2 things caught my attention:

1. In section 4.1 Mobile Contactless Payment, they mention that: “This capability possibly extends to ATM cash withdrawals and most other standard banking activities.” (page 15 of the WP)
2. In section 4.2 Crypterium Cryptobank Functionality they talk about: “International transfers to cryptocurrency accounts or bank accounts, including bank cards, without restrictions (other than those applied for anti-money-laundering purposes).” (page 16 of the WP)

So I asked the team (on their bitcointalk thread) if this meant that it would be possible to exchange crypto into fiat and then transfer it to a standard bank account from the mobile App. And if so, how would this and ATM withdrawals work? This was the reply from the Crypterium Support team:

For those of you that may have images blocked, their answer to point 2 was "Yes.", and to point 1 was that "Same as contactless NFC payment, if an ATM has and NFC terminal installed money withdrawal will be performed same to ordinary payment transaction."
To me, having that functionality is an absolute game changer and proves that this project has many more possibilities for the long term. It is not just payments to merchants or services, or loans, but also having access to your cryptocurrency as fiat right that moment. Like I said in a previous post, this is exactly what I need right now, and I am guessing that a lot of cryptocurrency users need this as well. Sure, many of us invest in cryptocurrency for the long term, we hodl to see our profits rise, etc., but wouldn’t it be nice to have the option to set up a portion of your cryptocurrency for expenses, and be able to use it when you need to, instead of dealing with exchanges, slow transfers and what not? For me, it would be incredible. Of course I am not sure if ATM machines in my country already have an NFC terminal installed, but since the technology exists, I am sure it will make it here soonish, and I am looking forward to testing it once the time comes.

BTW, I forgot to mention this in my previous article, so in case you are interested, this is the Token Distribution (how much will be allocated the community, the team, bounties, etc.).

And, before you ask:

(got this information from their Medium FAQ post: https://medium.com/@crypterium_io/crypterium-faq-2c3d0d1167a9)

Seems like a pretty fair distribution actually. Now, I don't know if what I will say next is a valid observation, or just wishful thinking, but having the team's tokens locked up for 12 months gives me more confidence in the project because I think this will motivate them to continue to work hard for that extra year, so that the price of their token will continue to rise until they can sell their tokens on the exchanges, instead of just dumping them once the ICO is over (as has happened with many other projects).

The Token Sale is currently in the Bonus Sale stage. If you do decide to invest, I would appreciate it if you use my referral link or you can click here: https://tokensale.crypterium.io/?ref=c4e150c380dca0240a62b41f so that you can get reward amounts to 1% and I can get a reward as well (once you sign up, a referral link will be generated for you so that you can also earn rewards on your referrals).

Please note that there have been some changes in the ICO timeline that I posted last time (they have extended the Bonus Sale so that more people can have access to it), and it will be as follows:

How is this different? In the previous Bonus Sale timeline, the entire Bonus Sale ended on November 27th (with the 15% bonus lasting until November 13th, and then decreasing every “x” number of days), while now the Bonus Sale ends on December 25th. As with the previous timeline, the bonus amount is defined by the dates in which you purchased and not by the quantity you purchase, but in order to qualify for the bonus the minimum amount you must purchase is 75 tokens (so, BTC 0.0075 or about USD 50 at current exchange rates). The rest of the ICO remains the same regarding token distribution and exchange listings.

The team has decided this because they have noticed that many people who are interested on their ICO are relatively new to the cryptocurrency world and due to the difficulty and delays behind purchasing cryptocurrency to invest on an ICO, they would have been unable to make their purchase before the best bonuses ended, so the team decided on an extension (you can read more behind their reasoning on their Medium article: https://medium.com/@crypterium_io/official-update-about-bonus-tokensale-stages-275b335ce68f). In my opinion, I think this is great because it means this ICO is reaching the masses out there.

Buying Tokens:

I might do an investing guideline, but I think the process is pretty straightforward after you click on "Buy CRPT tokens NOW"

You can pay with multiple cryptocurrencies (BCH, ETH, ETC, LTC, DASH, USDT, XRP) as well as with fiat via Visa, Mastercard or USD (wire transfer for any amount over $50). I think this is incredible and makes sense as Crypterium is aiming to be your one stop solution for where to store your cryptocurrency, so no point in limiting the way you can invest. However, even if it might be tempting to use your Visa or MC to buy CRPTs, take into account that “Exchange commission may be up to 25%” and that is a lot (you might do better opening a Coinbase account and purchasing BTC, ETH or LTC with your card as their fees are lower, but their verification process can take a while … mine took about a week). A wire transfer might be worth it depending on the amount you are purchasing and your bank / country fees (but I have a feeling this might also be expensive).
In order to make the purchase you first need to make a deposit to your account. Depending on the method you use, the system will generate a personal unique address for your payment (there is a calculator available so that you can figure out the amount you will pay depending on the amount of tokens purchased). Make sure you complete Step 3 and click “Buy Now”to get your CRPTs, otherwise you will have only transferred funds to your Crypterium account.

Before investing, take the time to do your own research. I am no financial advisor. I am learning as I go (making mistakes along the way) and what I think is interesting and good, might not work for you. If you want to learn more about Crypterium, visit their official website: https://crypterium.io/. Check out the team and read their whitepaper.
As always, remember that investing on any ICO or cryptocurrency is risky (as is any type of investment), and there is no guarantee of returns, so never (ever) invest more than you can afford to lose.

Happy ICOing!

---

Links to some of my previous articles:

• Crypterium: ICO on my watch list
• My Current Electroneum Feelings
• My Own Harvey Weinsteins
• How I was crypto-currency scammed
• My First ICO – Electroneum