The value of all bitcoin held globally is about $160 billion, roughly two-thirds of the Asian remittance market and a third of the global one, according to World Bank estimates. Reduced liquidity on cryptocurrency exchanges and regulatory uncertainty are, for now, limiting monthly bitcoin-based remittances to millions of dollars in a multibillion-dollar market, the start-ups say. Liquidity problemsThe giants Western Union and Moneygram, which dominate the current market, are testing Ripple’s XRP, a cryptocurrency smaller and more centralised than bitcoin. The value of all bitcoin held globally is about $160 billion, roughly two-thirds of the Asian remittance market and a third of the global one, according to World Bank estimates. In Singapore, start-up Toast gave up using bitcoin for remittances so it could get licensed.

Source: Mint March 13, 2018 14:48 UTC