Mobile Money for the Caribbean Much in the way email changed the world by making communication fast and cheap, bitcoin is changing the world of digital finance and reshaping how we perceive, manage and store our money. Karsten Becker, CEO, Caricoin Ltd

Caricoin Ltd is pleased to announce the launch of the first social mobile money platform in the Caribbean to use bitcoin, a digital currency that is fast gaining popularity worldwide. Available now at https://www.caricoin.com and created specifically with the needs of the Caribbean people in mind, it is a free, downloadable app that allows users to instantly send and receive bitcoin and use them to pay for goods and services, all on a no-fee basis.

Caricoin’s mobile wallet, built in partnership with the leading security platform BitGo, allows anyone to open an account by simply downloading the application and linking it to their mobile number. With mere seconds required for activation and no preconditions to qualify, the app opens the doors to users around the Caribbean who do not have access to traditional banking.

“Much in the way email changed the world by making communication fast and cheap, bitcoin is changing the world of digital finance and reshaping how we perceive, manage and store our money.” – Karsten Becker, CEO, Caricoin Ltd.

Engineered with a social workflow that puts people at the heart of all transactions, the Caricoin mobile wallet deeply integrates chat functionality to streamline communication between senders and receivers. It also comes with the ability to instantly top up mobile phones with pre-paid minutes anywhere within the Caribbean.

Banking the Unbanked

Due to the privacy and security that come with using bitcoin, Caricoin’s wallet eliminates the stumbling blocks that currently prevent access to traditional banking services. This makes it an ideal platform for the region’s unbanked by providing them with a steppingstone into the global banking system. The unbanked currently amount to approximately 50% of the Caribbean’s population (1).

Financial Inclusion

The company’s long term goal is to both accelerate and encourage financial inclusion by creating a mobile money ecosystem based on a single currency that can easily be used by anyone across the Caribbean. This has long been one of the goals of CARICOM, known as the Caribbean Single Market and Economy (CSME) (2), and its potential for transforming the region’s economy is positively astounding.

Zero Cost Remittance

Caricoin is also actively working on building a zero-cost remittance corridor for the diaspora, members of the Caribbean community working overseas to support their families. It will do this by giving them the ability to easily buy bitcoin from within the Caricoin wallet, and then send them home to loved ones who can use them to pay bills or cash them out locally. This model has the capability to save the region over US$ 800 million dollars (3) annually in remittance fees.

About Bitcoin

Bitcoin is the world’s largest digital currency, with a consistent trajectory of growth and increasing interest in the realms of traditional banking. It currently boasts a market cap of over US$10 billion, having firmly established credibility with more than 100 million transactions to date. Find out more at http://www.bitcoin.org.

About BitGo

BitGo is the global leader in Bitcoin security and a pioneer of multi-signature technology. Based in Palo Alto, BitGo launched the first ever multi-signature Bitcoin wallet in 2013 and continues to create innovative security services on top of emerging industry standards. Find out more at http://www.bitgo.com.

About Caricoin

Caricoin Ltd is a UK-based company with development offices in Kingston, Jamaica. It is focused on transforming the Caribbean’s economy by delivering a secure, user-friendly and less costly way of storing wealth and moving it around. To learn more and to install the Caricoin wallet on your device now, visit http://www.caricoin.com.

(1) Taken from the World Bank 2015 Global Findex Report

(2) The CSME as defined at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CARICOM_Single_Market_and_Economy

(3) Taken from the World Bank Migration and Remittances Brief, Oct 2015