Usability problems, lack of customer service support, high fees and long wait times are just a few of the problems facing those who want to delve into cryptocurrency trading. Into that gap are coming strong contenders bent on disrupting an already disruptive market.

User and investor interest in cryptocurrency may be at an all-time high with a curve that appears to trend in one way – up – for the foreseeable future. But users are still beset by a range of problems when they want to buy, trade, or invest in cryptocurrency and the range of new tokens appearing on the market. This includes a lack of liquidity for many if not most of the innovative ERC-20 utility token startups right now.

They also include service outages – which has, understandably, caused widespread alarm including the outage at Kraken in the middle of January and the ongoing issues suffered by Coinbase and Bitfinex.

Those problems, along with the growing market cap of the sector, are also being widely reported in the media – creating a bit of a backlash for the industry (in addition to the many other criticisms including the volatility of the sector). Complaints began to appear in the press last spring that included dire accounts of serious problems, about customer complaints that went unheeded, basic IT problems (like the inability to even log in) and other significant bugs that affected access and even smooth market functioning. They are clearly not over, as last month’s tech problems demonstrate well. On top of that, regulation is a looming reality – no matter what the most hard-core crypto evangelists might swear. Platforms which are not compliant risk legal action or shut-down.

In other words, start-ups who are also dedicated to mainstreaming cryptocurrency have a lot of opportunities to disrupt the current space – and they are trying. The stakes are large. Even a small piece of this market share will reap huge profits for the investors of the successful firms while providing valuable services that are still evolving with the vertical.

The CoinMetro Ecosystem Solution

CoinMetro plans on being the compliant alternative to all of that.

Users will be able to use the following features, united by a single token:

An Exchange: CoinMetro’s exchange will be fast, easy and offers a secure way to buy, sell and trade crypto-coins. The exchange will also offer low transaction fees and profit sharing, off-chain transactions and Atomic swap-like options. The platform is also being built to comply with all existing and incoming regulations.

Trading Platform: The startup is building a user-focussed trading environment designed to meet the needs of both beginners and pro traders. The interface will be user-friendly and easy to understand. However, the platform will also offer an advanced toolset designed for professionals (including customizable charting and analytics tools). The environment will also be serviced by a matching engine that supports standard and non-standard order types. Traders will be given easy lending options and also receive up to a 1:50 leverage on non-deliverable OTC digital assets.

Investment Platform: The ecosystem will offer innovative investment models for those looking for the coolest new (vetted) ICOs. Its focus will be on taking proven trading models from traditional finance and adapting them to the digital asset economy.

ICO Express Framework: Want to deploy smart contracts and launch custom tokens with a few clicks? This is the platform for you. Vetted ICOs will be able to issue smart contracts and tokens easily that will also immediately be liquid and tradeable on the exchange after issue. White labeling opportunities exist for enterprise clients. The Framework will be built to be integrated with NEM, ETH and NEO blockchains. Larger token sale investors will also get first access to new tokens minted inside the platform.

Partnering With Traders: CoinMetro also offers another extremely intriguing option – the ability to partner with successful traders and asset managers to help grow a portfolio. Here is how it will work. Professional asset managers will be issued a unique personal token. Investors can buy these tokens. The managers earn a percentage of their overall gains in a method similar to a commission. This is called Tokenized Asset Management (or TAM). Rewards, however, will still be paid in COIN (the system token).

Electronically Traded Crypto Funds: CoinMetro is also introducing a new kind of product into the market – an ECTF. These are very much like ETFs – but designed for cryptocurrencies. These funds will be divided into baskets of digital assets curated by the CoinMetro team. Users can easily invest in multiple tokens with one click. This also allows not only coin diversification, but industry diversification into markets like fintech, healthcare or IoT. Investors will be able to participate in funds based on risk profile or even factors like social media influence.

Other services, including ATM access, are also on the roadmap.

The Benefits of CoinMetro’s Bundled Service Offering

CoinMetro’s offerings already stack up well in the market. In comparison with traditional exchanges like Binance and Bitfinex, the platform not only offers a complete investment platform but also turnkey ICO services and Atomic Swaps (so even its trading options are better). On issues like margin lending, CoinMetro also offers superior services to the existing large exchanges, and unlike them also offers liquidity solutions. The in-house token, COIN, creates an opportunity for discounted fees and other platform services.

What is really unique, however, are the service offerings such as managed accounts and pre-created diversification options to help guide not only newbies, but help experienced traders and managers mitigate risk.

Also unique to the CoinMetro platform is, of course, the turnkey ICO services it offers. The ability to quickly mint a new kind of coin, on one of several networks, creates a mainstreamable business model for not only ICOs but other kinds of assetized token distribution models.

The firm clearly knows this. They are also currently seeking brand ambassadors. While this is a common form of affiliate marketing for the crypto community, finding the right people who can talk about why the service is different from what are undoubtedly going to be competitors, will be key. If CoinMetro delivers what it promises, that shouldn’t be difficult.

The problem they are trying to solve is one the entire crypto community faces. CoinMetro’s cryptocurrency wallet system will allow clients to hold, deposit, and withdraw in Bitcoin, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum, Ripple and Litecoin.

Even better? The firm intends to operate as a registered eMoney Institution. They will be obtaining multiple licenses in different jurisdictions to ensure that they remain compliant with regulation (either current or developing) for all the services they provide. According to some industry analysts, the biggest challenge faced by the current cryptocurrency exchanges are maintaining relationships with payment gateways, banks and traditional financial institutions. Since that is how cryptocurrency enters the world of fiat, this is an important distinction if not a differentiator between CoinMetro and the competition that is worth checking out for this feature alone.

If they haven’t covered all the bases, at least they have gone a long way beyond the low hanging fruit.

The CoinMetro Token Sale

Here are the details of the live CoinMetro token sale:

Token name: COIN (XCM)

Token base: ERC-20

Token supply: 500,000,000 tokens

Token sale target: 300 million COIN (hard cap)

Token sale start: Ongoing now

Token price: Prices are increasing by EUR 0.01 each time the Token Sale hits a 50 million soft cap.

CoinMetro’s website

CoinMetro’s whitepaper