Bitt, a Caribbean-based bitcoin exchange, has created the digital Barbadian dollar based on a blockchain system. The company claims it will focus on developing a teller and ATM network for the new currency.

The value of the digital Barbadian dollar is established at 1:1 rate to the country’s government-backed currency.

The digital dollar is built on the Colored Coins protocol, which offers methods for representing and managing real-world assets on top of the bitcoin blockchain. Bitt CEO Gabriel Abed insists the newly released currency is fiat:

“We launched our exchange nine months ago. Now, we’ve launched our second phase, the digital fiat dollar.”

According to Abed, the main target audience of the new digital money is underbanked Barbados population, including small business owners. According to various estimates, 50 to 60% of people in the Caribbean are unbanked.

“We don’t have e-commerce on this island, but we have 100% penetration of mobile.”

Bitt claims to be ready for the next phase of corporate development, which is described by Abed as “building an ecosystem.” The company now intends to concentrate on the creation of an extensive network of digital currency tellers and ATMs, where users could easily exchange digital dollars and bitcoins into cash. Another goal of the Caribbean startup is to strengthen its position in the remittance market, competing with such well known international companies as MoneyGram and Western Union.

Bitt was launched in March 2015 after attracting $1.5 million in seed funding from Avatar Capital. It is the first bitcoin exchange in the Caribbean.

Elena Platonova