New App Automatically Invests Your Spare Change in Cryptocurrency

Despite the growing ubiquity of Bitcoin, investing in cryptocurrency is still a relatively complex and awkward process. A new app, however, aims to streamline the cryptocurrency purchasing process by taking the small change from the everyday spending of users and investing it in a customizable spread of digital currencies.

The Dust solution picks up where popular cryptocurrency investment app Lawnmower left off in March this year, when they removed their highly popular “spare change” feature. Setting up Dust is extremely simple— users connect the app to their bank account, which allows it to see transactions. The app then rounds each transaction up to the nearest dollar, collecting spare change.

When the Dust app has collected around $10 of change, it uses this capital to invest in a spread of cryptocurrencies. These cryptocurrencies include bitcoin, ether, and litecoin, and can be diversified according to user-set parameters. To order these cryptocurrencies, Dust integrates with Coinbase, which is one of the largest crypto exchanges online.

Dust claims to work with “most high street banks,” as well as over 9,000 different financial institutions in the United States. Banks supported by Dust include Citi, Chase, and Wells Fargo, which is possible though the integration of the Plaid platform. Plaid functions as a financial services technology layer that allows third-party application to connect to bank accounts, acting as a bridge between banks and developers.

The biggest advantage offered by the Dust app, according to co-founder Jordan Fish, is the way the platform eliminates hesitation on cryptocurrency investment. The highly volatile nature of the cryptocurrency market can be somewhat intimidating for new crypto investors, making it difficult to determine the right time to pull the trigger. Dust automates the buying process, as well as providing users with an autonomous way to generate long-term savings.

Dust is currently in early Alpha, but provides interested crypto enthusiasts with the ability to register for an alpha invite. Fish has stated that both he and the other founders of Dust do not yet have any plans to monetize the platform, but haven’t ruled out the possibility of incorporating a fee structure in future.