A recent survey by Maps.me revealed that about half of its users were interested in in-app financial services. At present, over 220,000 are on a waiting list for a digital wallet.
Payments company Circle has announced a partnership with maps application Maps.me to introduce instant international and in-app payments via Circle’s stablecoin USDC (USD Coin).
Maps.me is a mobile application that allows offline map and GPS access with OpenStreetMap data. Their partnership with Circle will enable app users to make transfer funds to more than 35 countries from their linked credit or debit cards using Circle’s stablecoin USDC for a small fee. The Maps.me digital wallet will also facilitate the purchase and storage of USDC and MAPS tokens. Users could also earn up to 8% on stored value, get discounts of up to 50% on some eSIM and telecoms services and 10% cashback on Booking.com.
Jeremy Allaire, CEO and Co-founder of Circle comments:
“We’re very proud to be a part of the first effort to bring the DeFi experience to a massive audience on Maps.me. Our two companies share a commitment to transforming money into an internet experience that allows users to send, share, pay and invest as simply and freely as email, text messaging, or social media.”
As of 2020, Maps.me had over 140 million downloads and had been used by some 60 million individuals in 195 countries. A recent survey by the app revealed that about half of its users were interested in in-app financial services. At present, over 220,000 are on a waiting list for Map.me’s digital wallet.
In a press release Maps.me Co-Founder Alex Grebnev was quoted to say:
“DeFi is ready to go mainstream and Circle is a natural partner for the Maps.me ecosystem in driving mass adoption. We know that Maps.me’s large and highly engaged user base is looking for instant, secure, and easy-to-access financial services that are relevant to their needs. This partnership with Circle accelerates our ability to deliver the benefits of DeFi and put people in charge of their financial lives, just like they are in charge of their travel.”
USDC stablecoin has recently gained popularity and has increased in circulation from about 400 million at the beginning of last year to 23 billion in June 2021 according to data by CoinMarketCap.
This collaboration could aid in making the stablecoin more accessible to more people and make it a “seamless payment tool around the globe”.