Jun 4, 2021

Boston Fintech Start-Up, PAYMYNT Financial, Acquires Cryptocurrency PayTech Firm, LettucePay Boston Fintech Start-Up, PAYMYNT Financial, Acquires Cryptocurrency PayTech Firm, LettucePay Published on : We spoke with Brian Goldberg, founding LettucePay member, and the new Blockchain Advisor at PAYMYNT Financial , about the recent acquisition. How did LettucePay start and why? The idea for LettucePay started in early 2020 while attending various Stellar Network meetups. For those who aren’t aware, the Stellar Network is a blockchain-based distributed ledger that connects banks, payment systems, and the people who use them, with very low transaction costs worldwide. The LettucePay team was particularly interested in using Stellar Network’s open-sourced technology because we wanted to build a product that could help retail businesses convert blockchain tokens into USD payments, for next-to-nothing transaction fees. After reading about Jed McCaleb and the Stellar Network, Stellar seemed like the obvious place to build such a payment product. We started small at first by entering Stellar Hackathon competitions. Then grew to the point of implementing real-use cases for cryptocurrency payments at merchants in New York City. Earlier this year, we built a minimum viable product (MVP) that converted Stellar Network assets into USD tokens. Our MVP enabled a customer, let’s say “Customer A,” to settle their blockchain tokens with a merchant, let’s say “Merchant B,” in the form of a USD payment. Once completed, we were very excited about its technological possibilities for the greater blockchain community. In the end, the LettucePay team created an app that enables merchants to instantly accept cryptocurrency payments by settling cryptocurrency amounts as USD payments, for next-to-nothing transaction fees. Using our LettucePay product, retail stores can cut out merchant processing fees, eliminate chargebacks, gain new tech-savvy customers, and develop new business models for very small transactions. We can also empower consumers to spend popular assets such as Bitcoin by representing their Bitcoin on the Stellar Network. We knew our LettucePay technology was onto something when our MVP won the 2020 Stellar Community Fund. How did PAYMYNT Financial come to acquire LettucePay? PAYMYNT Financial is a financial growth and cryptocurrency shopping rewards company that uses the Stellar Network’s open-sourced technology. The LettucePay team and I discovered PAYMYNT Financial after networking within the Stellar Network Community. After winning the Stellar Community Fund, the LettucePay team was approached by the PAYMYNT Financial team with an offer to acquire our company. The PAYMYNT team was especially interested in our LettucePay app because our tech uses the Stellar Network to convert digital assets into cryptocurrencies, like Bitcoin. We saw PAYMYNT Financial’s offer to acquire LettucePay as an excellent opportunity to not only expand the reach of cryptocurrency payments to larger audiences but to also help the everyday consumer gain more control over their personal finances – all made possible through the Stellar Network’s use of distributed, hybrid blockchain technology. Can you explain your new role at PAYMYNT Financial? Absolutely! I’m excited to announce my new role at PAYMYNT Financial as a Blockchain Advisor. For those who may not know, PAYMYNT Financial is launching a shopping rewards platform called PAYMYNT Rewards. The shopping rewards app aims to attract consumers who may not necessarily understand the benefits of blockchain technology. We’re currently in the process of onboarding thousands of merchant partners to the PAYMYNT Rewards platform. Together, I’m confident we can make cryptocurrency payments possible on a much larger scale. As PAYMYNT Financial’s Blockchain Advisor, I’m helping the PAYMYNT Rewards team utilize Stellar Network’s distributed, hybrid blockchain technology to expand their financial investment opportunities. This includes allowing users to purchase investments, like Bitcoin, with their shopping rewards money. PAYMYNT Reward members will be able to send their shopping rewards to peers, shop at affiliate merchant stores, or invest their shopping rewards in the form of stocks, mutual funds, and cryptocurrency. All of these amazing investment features are made possible with blockchain technology. Through the proper implementation of the Stellar Network’s features, PAYMYNT Reward members will have maximum flexibility over their shopping rewards. I’m thrilled to be advising the PAYMYNT team on this blockchain project. How will LettucePay’s payment technology be implemented to the PAYMYNT Rewards platform? PAYMYNT Rewards will be implementing LettucePay’s innovative payment technology in a variety of ways. Together, it’s our goal to make cryptocurrency payments possible at a variety of merchant partners by the end of 2021. We plan to leverage LettucePay’s core Stellar Network Wallet Functions and Digital Asset Features to simplify the PAYMYNT Rewards payment process. Through the use of the Stellar Network, we aim to decrease excessive payment fees for both PAYMYNT Rewards merchant partners and consumers. Perhaps most excitedly, though, we’ll be using LettucePay’s technology to convert PAYMYNT shopping rewards into various digital assets, like Bitcoin, bonds, and other cryptocurrencies. Stay tuned! What goals are you looking forward to achieving with the PAYMYNT Financial Team? PAYMYNT Financial makes it easier for modern consumers to utilize blockchain technology through everyday spending. As mentioned earlier, there’s a large group of people in our society who remain unaware of the benefits of blockchain technology, especially in regards to their personal finances. That’s the beauty of PAYMYNT Rewards. Our members are able to shop and earn universal rewards without necessarily understanding the full intricacies of blockchain technology. Imagine being able to exchange your loyalty reward points for digital bonds, cryptocurrencies, or even real estate. Blockchain technology makes this possible. We believe shopping and reward platforms are an excellent strategy for mass cryptocurrency adoption. Within the next two years, it’s my goal to help make this possibility a reality. I’d like to see one million PAYMYNT Reward members shopping regularly on the PAYMYNT Rewards platform by 2022. That would make one million loyalty reward members making use of a Stellar Network Wallet and Stellar Network’s hybrid technology in some pretty incredible ways. PAYMYNT Financial’s acquisition of LettucePay is just the beginning. I’m excited to be a part of the PAYMYNT team for the ride! 60