New Gold-Backed Debit Card Launched In Partnership With MasterCard

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New Gold-Backed Debit Card Launched In Partnership With MasterCard

 

 

by Tyler Durden

Nov 21, 2017 2:35 AM

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In recent years, there has been a major debate about the respective merits of gold versus Bitcoin, even though many, not all, gold bulls are also supporters of the latter. Gold advocates generally view favourably Bitcoin’s inherent characteristics of decentralisation, finite supply and ability to operate (so far) outside of the usual interference by western central banks. Having said that, the launch of Bitcoin futures on the CME in the coming weeks could lead to naked shorting of “paper Bitcoin” by any parties, including central banks and large commercial banks, who deem capping of the Bitcoin price necessary. As we discussed last week in "Financial Times: Sell Bitcoin Because The Market Is About To Become "Civilized", this could align Bitcoin with one of the major issues which has held the gold market hostage for years, time will tell.

While many gold investors remain entrenched in the view that gold will (eventually) prove to be the better store of value, one thing many would acknowledge is that Bitcoin is likely to evolve into a superior means of payment. However, that could be in the process of changing.

A fintech start up is partnering with some financial heavyweights to create a payments system backed by physical – not paper – gold. According to the Financial Times.

 

 

The world’s oldest currency is being brought into the digital age with the launch of a debit card and app that will allow people to pay for goods in gold.

 

Fintech group Glint has teamed up with Lloyds Banking Group in the UK and MasterCard to create an app that enables people to load credit in various currencies, which can then be used to buy a portion of a physical gold bar. Customers use the app at the checkout to select whether to pay in a currency or gold, before transacting with their MasterCard.

 

 

The development marks the first time people in the UK and overseas can own just a portion of a gold bar through an app, which can then be used in mobile and debit card-based payments. The app also allows people to send gold to peers in the form of a digital payment. Jason Cozens, Glint’s chief executive and co-founder, said: “Everyone is familiar with gold as one of society’s oldest means of exchange, its universal acceptance, its reliability, its history as a store of wealth and as a means of underpinning the value of ‘paper’ currencies. “Unlike paper currencies, gold can’t be wiped out, devalued or corrupted.”

If you’ve been watching carefully Glint (website is glintpay.com) has been working towards this moment for some time. The Crunch reported a capital raising in August this year, noting the impressive list of backers.

 

 

Glint, a stealthy London fintech startup that promises a new “global currency,” has raised £3.1 million from a plethora of individual backers in the financial services and asset management space, alongside early-stage investor Bray Capital.

 

 

They comprise Haruko Fukuda, former CEO of the World Gold Council and NED of Investec Bank; Oliver Bolitho, formerly Chairman of Goldman Sachs Asset Management Asia; Hugh Sloane, co-founder of asset manager Sloane Robinson; and Lord Flight Of Worcester, formerly of Guinness Flight Global Asset Management.

Other supporters of the new app include the Tokyo Commodity Exchange, and NEC Capital Solutions, a technology integration company. The co-founder and COO of Glint, Ben Davies (right in the photo below), is well known to us for his media appearances - often lambasting manipulation of the gold price – and for running the precious metals investment fund, Hinde Capital. The CEO and co-founder, Jason Cozens, also has gold market experience, having set up “GoldMadeSimple.com, a website that allows investors to buy and store physical gold. Additionally, he set up two ecommerce and online marketing businesses.

In terms of how the service works, the FT reports.

 

 

Glint is working with Lloyds in the UK as the deposit holder for customers storing money on their app. When a customer decides to buy gold through the app, this is used to purchase part of a gold bar that is physically allocated in vaults in Switzerland. The app will initially be available in the UK and Europe from Monday before being rolled out in Asia and the US next year.

 

 

Mr Davies said the app helps to “democratise” gold by opening access to people who might not be able to afford to buy a whole bar, rather than the commodity being the “preserve of the wealthy”. He added: “The advent of electronic wallets and faster payments through technology means we’re able to use gold in the electronic payment system.

 

“We believe over next few decades people will need the ability to protect their money by owning gold and have the ability to spend it.

We doubt that we’ll have to wait two decades before the vast majority of people will need to protect the value of their money. It could be a matter of months, so Glint’s new service might prove timely. Here are some further thoughts from Davies in the FT article.

 

 

Glint’s new service is riding the wave of alternative payments, such as bitcoin, as more people seek payment methods that can store value in a way that differs from traditional currencies. Ben Davies, a co-founder of Glint, said: “We want to create a fairer form of money whereby we give you choice and control over how you protect your money in an era where central banks issue more currency, and so the value of your currency is falling.”

http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2017-11-20/new-gold-backed-debit-card-launched-partnership-lloyds-bank-mastercard

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Amid crypto hysteria, a startup thinks now is the time to pay for things with gold

I'll take 2,000 cappuccinos, please. (Reuters/Andrea Comas)

 

November 20, 2017

People are going crazy for cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin just set anotherrecord above $8,000, shaking off a 25% drop earlier this month. But if the wild ride of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies is too risky for you, a new payments startup thinks it has just the thing. Something stable, comforting, as old as money itself: gold.

Glint, a new app that launches today in the UK, offers payment services using gold. In partnership with MasterCard and Lloyds Bank, Glint users can load credit onto their account and use it to buy a portion of a gold bar to store their money. Users can then send money and gold to others with the app and use a Glint debit card to make payments in a variety of currencies, and gold, at interbank exchange rates.

Physical gold holdings are allocated to the owner and held in an independent and insured vault in Switzerland. Glint, which is regulated by the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority, plans to expand into Europe and Asia next year. The app currently supports the British pound and gold, with more currencies to come.

The effort to “reintroduce gold as money” is because the creators of Glint thought it was unfair that “money is prone to depreciate in ways we have no control over,” according to the company’s website. Jason Cozens, CEO of Glint, said: “Unlike ‘paper’ currencies, gold can’t be wiped out, devalued or corrupted.”

It’s been more than 40 years since the US cut the dollar’s ties to gold and centuries since physical gold was used a means of payment. Where some people have turned to bitcoin as an alternative to currencies controlled by governments and central banks, Glint is trying to make physical gold part of today’s electronic payments infrastructure.

Gold is still used in financial markets as a means to safeguard wealth. According to analysts at Citi, the “new normal” of heightened geopolitical tensions will boost demand for gold and push the price above $1,4000 per ounce for “sustained periods” by 2020. That said, the latest figures from the World Gold Council show that global demand for the precious metal has fallen to its lowest level since late 2009.

Gold has served as a haven for thousands of years, so if new technology can the illiquid, hard-to-move precious metal more user friendly, it might have some potential as an alternative currency for the risk averse.

https://qz.com/1133643/amid-bitcoin-hysteria-payments-startup-glint-is-launching-a-gold-backed-debit-card/

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Gold becomes shoppers' new digital way to pay after app launch

• Users will own a physical piece of gold that sits in a Swiss vault.
• The app allows people to use gold as a means of payment.
• Foreign currencies will soon be added to the app.

David Reid | @cnbcdavy

Published 7:40 AM ET Mon, 20 Nov 2017  Updated 15 Hours AgoCNBC.com

 

Gold joins bitcoin in digital payment space  14 Hours Ago | 01:01

An electronic payment app that allows people to pay for goods and services in gold has been launched by fintech firm Glint.

Released Monday, the app — also called Glint — allows users to link a Mastercard debit card to their phone, which then lets them buy physical gold bullion that is stored in a Swiss vault.

Jason Cozens, the company's chief executive and co-founder, said Monday that central banks' quantitative easing policies and the collapse of some banks have made many people realize that traditional accounts are not a risk-free option.

 

"Since the financial crisis, people are starting to understand that purchasing power of their money isn't safe," he said.

On its website, Glint says that once either a currency or gold is linked to a Mastercard, customers can buy "anything from a coffee to a car." The company adds that users can also select the precious metal to make peer-to-peer payments.

Cozens valued the gold market at $8 trillion and said people would be surprised by how many people want to hold or spend gold.

He added that the app was originally aimed at wealthy people looking to store their wealth outside of the banking system, but research showed that there was interest across the financial spectrum.

"Look at a student who grew up during the financial crisis. They have a mindset that says they believe in independence about savings," he said.

Cozens said he expected the app to prove particularly popular in India and Germany.

Danish Siddiqui | Reuters

A woman tries a gold earring at a jewellery showroom in Mumbai, India on October 28, 2016.

Over the next few months, Glint will also allow users to hold and spend funds in a variety of currencies, each stored in a U.K. bank.

Users can check exchange rates on their phone before selecting which currency or what amount of gold they will use to make a purchase.

The app was launched in Europe on Monday and will be rolled out in Asia and the U.S. next year. Early investors include a former CEO of the World Gold Council as well as a former chairman of Goldman Sachs in Asia.

The price of gold has risen about 12 percent in value this year and currently sits at just below $1,300 an ounce.

https://www.cnbc.com/2017/11/20/gold-joins-bitcoin-in-the-digital-payment-space.html