As of 2024, global crypto ownership has reached 562 million people.
Singapore specifically has led the way toward widespread crypto adoption in the Asia-Pacific region, accounting for roughly US$627 million in total cryptocurrency funding.
Adding crypto-based payment options to your payment ecosystem offers many essential benefits. Not only can you tap into the rapidly growing market, but you can also offer crypto top-ups to customers wanting to add extra funds to their digital accounts with your business.
Let’s explore crypto top-ups together and examine the real-world use case of how Grab leverages crypto payment gateways to create a new business advantage.
What is a Crypto-Top Up?
A crypto top-up is the process of adding funds to a digital wallet using cryptocurrency.
The concept of a crypto top-up stems from the more traditional process of topping up prepaid accounts, such as a reloadable prepaid card. Unlike prepaid cards, however, crypto top-ups require access to a digital wallet and a crypto payment gateway integration.
Crypto payment gateways work as follows:
- A business integrates a crypto payment gateway, such as Triple-A, into its payment ecosystem.
- Customers connect their digital wallets to the business’s payment system, granting access to their cryptocurrency wallet for payment services.
- When needed, the customer initiates a crypto top-up using cryptocurrency to add funds to their account within the business’s payment system (such as adding funds to a food delivery account).
- The crypto payment gateway handles the storage and conversion of cryptocurrency for the top-up.
- The customer receives the converted funds in their account, with the funds ready for instant use when the customer wants to pay for a product or service from the business’s app or platform.
The Business Benefits of Crypto Top-Ups & Crypto Payment Gateways
Businesses offering services via a digital app or platform must adapt to evolving customer preferences. As the demand for crypto-based payments continues to grow, crypto payment gateways and crypto top-ups offer a convenient method for introducing cryptocurrency into a business’s payment system.
The business benefits of crypto top-ups and crypto payment gateway integrations include:
- Increased Customer Base: Offering crypto payments provides access to a broader, tech-savvy audience. For businesses expanding abroad, crypto top-ups can simplify cross-border payments.
- Lower Transaction Fees: Crypto payment gateways enable businesses to avoid costly transaction fees charged by traditional intermediaries, such as credit card companies.
- Faster Settlements: Crypto payment gateways facilitate T+1 settlement cycles for businesses. Any funds received are transferred to the payment account the next business day.
- Regulated & Licensed: Cryptocurrency payment gateways handle the regulatory complexities of cryptocurrency transfers and top-ups, ensuring all AML & AFT checks are in place.
- No chargebacks: Unlike credit card payments, blockchain-based payments utilise immutable ledgers that can publicly verify a transaction. Crypto payment gateways eliminate the risk of chargebacks and chargeback fraud, as blockchain transactions are irreversible.
- No volatility: By using a crypto payment gateway for crypto top-ups, businesses are not exposed to crypto at all. The payment gateway bears this exposure instead, converting the crypto to fiat instantly on behalf of the business.
Triple-A Case Study: How Grab Successfully Implemented Crypto Top-Ups
Grab is an all-encompassing platform for offering and purchasing essential services, such as deliveries and financial services. A key feature of Grab is GrabPay, the platform’s mobile e-wallet solution, which allows businesses on the Grab platform to accept cashless payments.
Recently, Grab partnered with Triple-A to begin offering its platform users access to crypto payments. Based in Singapore, Grab now allows digital currency owners in Singapore to use these currencies for all types of everyday transactions, from reserving a ride to ordering groceries.
Let’s take a look at how Grab implemented crypto top-ups through its partnership with Triple-A:
The Challenge: Finding the Right Solution for Crypto Payments
To begin offering crypto top-ups, the first major challenge for Grab was finding the right provider. Specifically, Grab needed a partner who could offer three key benefits:
- An efficient crypto payment gateway: Integrating a crypto payment gateway was a top priority for Grab, as crypto-based payments of any kind would not be possible without such a gateway.
- Crypto conversions: Storing and converting cryptocurrency to fiat currencies can be a complicated process, requiring strong technical knowledge of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency wallets. As such, Grab needed a partner that offered conversion services.
- Regulatory compliance: Cryptocurrency presents complex regulatory challenges that vary depending on specific regions. To keep its payment system as simple as possible, Grab needed a partner that could handle the regulatory side of crypto payments on their behalf.
The Solution: Why Grab Chose Triple-A for Digital Wallet Crypto Top-Ups
After researching the market for different cryptocurrency payment solutions, Grab chose to partner with Triple-A, a payment firm offering digital currency payments and payouts. Triple-A acts as a middle-man for all crypto-based transactions on Grab and handles the necessary currency conversions.
Through its partnership with Triple-A, Grab can now accept digital currency payments and crypto top-ups using BTC, ETH, USDC, and USDT currencies.
Additional benefits Grab realised through its partnership with Triple-A include:
- Greater cost savings and reduced chargeback fraud
- Increased margins via lower transaction fees
- Access to 560+ million digital currency owners
- Next-day bank settlements
Practical Steps for Implementing Crypto Top-Ups at Your Business
Like Grab, many businesses seek to implement crypto payment solutions to access a wider range of customers. If your company is considering adding crypto top-ups to your payment mix, make sure to follow these three vital steps for implementing crypto-based payments:
- Choose a Reliable Crypto Payment Gateway: Select a licensed and reputable provider of crypto payment gateways, such as Triple-A. Triple-A is licensed as a Major Payment Institution (MPI) by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.
- Prioritise Simple Regulatory Compliance: Adherence to local and international regulations regarding cryptocurrency is of the utmost importance when introducing crypto into your payment ecosystem. Look for providers that understand the specific crypto regulations in your region.
- Facilitate Customer Education: As you begin introducing crypto payments to your customers, have a clear strategy in place for educating customers on how to use crypto top-ups. Be sure to include e-wallet best practices that address relevant security concerns for customers holding crypto in a digital wallet.
Embracing Modern Payments with Crypto Top-Ups
Crypto top-ups offer businesses like yours an exceptional opportunity to reduce costs while heightening the customer experience on your app or platform. Grab’s success with Triple-A offers essential proof of the viability of using cryptocurrency as a primary payment solution in modern payment systems.
Explore the possibilities of crypto top-ups today with Triple-A.
