Strike Expands into Europe
Strike, the Bitcoin-centric payments app founded by CEO Jack Mallers, has expanded its services into the European market. The move into Europe follows Bitcoin’s (BTC) recent price surge, reaching an all-time high of over $70,000 last month, propelled in part by the approval of ETFs in January 2024.
Despite the competitive landscape featuring established players like eToro, Coinbase, and BitPanda, Strike believes its unique Bitcoin-first approach is its key differentiator in the market.
While speaking during a recent interview, Mallers affirmed that Europe’s market isn’t as saturated as America’s. Hence, he opined that Strike still has a wide target audience in Europe.
He emphasized BTC’s significance as the greatest innovation of the modern era and expressed the company’s ambition to excel globally in this domain. It’s worth noting that Strike’s focus on payment tools hasn’t overshadowed customer demand for trading and custody services.
Following the bankruptcy of its former custodian, Prime Trust, in June 2023, Strike moved its custody operation in-house. Furthermore, Mallers anticipates a continuation of the BTC rally amidst inflation concerns and growing skepticism toward traditional financial systems.
Lower Fees and Efficient Conversions
As Strike expands its footprint in Europe, it will offer lower processing fees for buying and selling BTC compared to competitors like Coinbase. Early trials proved that the app could facilitate lower-cost USD-EUR conversions through BTC, outperforming traditional transfer platforms such as Wise.
The company’s growth trajectory is impressive, experiencing 100% month-over-month growth with 70 full-time employees. Moreover, Strike strategically allocates a portion of its profits into BTC through its treasury.
Mallers reaffirms that Strike’s continuous accumulation of BTC underlines the company’s bullish outlook on the digital asset. He also said this perspective is one of the reasons Strike established its headquarters in El Salvador, the first nation to adopt BTC as a legal tender.
Additionally, the company forged a partnership with Twitter (now X) as the social platform launched attractive features to enhance its reach and accessibility.
Blockstream Founder Encourages BTC Accumulation
As Bitcoin enthusiasts eagerly await the effects of the recent halving event, Adam Back, the founder of Blockstream, has taken to social media to urge the community to intensify their BTC accumulation efforts.
In a tweet that echoed the spirit of the famous Duke Nukem persona, Back proclaimed that the moment has come to accumulate more “sats and chew bubblegum” even though he has exhausted his “supply of gum.”
Back’s call comes amid increasing institutional interest in Bitcoin. Spot BTC exchange-traded funds (ETFs) have been accumulating BTC at a notable pace, with on-chain data indicating consistent inflows over the past three days.
Institutional Interest in BTC Surges
Despite some recent weak inflows, particularly in ETFs like BlackRock’s iShares (IBIT), overall sentiment towards BTC remains positive. Before the halving event, spot Bitcoin ETFs were purchasing approximately 12 times the daily amount of BTC produced by miners.
Thus, this demand-supply dynamic will likely become more pronounced with the reduction in block rewards, exerting upward pressure on BTC’s price.