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What is MixPay? Why MixPay?
MixPay avatar
Written by MixPay
Updated over a week ago

Background

On October 31, 2008, Satoshi Nakamoto released the Bitcoin white paper "A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System". 13 years later, Bitcoin has become more influential, but it has not gained popularity as a payment tool, instead it has become the “digital gold”.

The cryptocurrency industry has boomed in recent years. There are thousands of various coins with a total market capitalization of more than $2 trillion. They can be traded on hundreds of centralized and decentralized exchanges, but none of them is regularly used for payment.

We know that cryptocurrencies are used widely as a store of value, as well as in DeFi, NFT, Metaverse, etc. But I strongly believe that the most widely use of cryptocurrency should be in the field of payment, which was also the original intention of Satoshi Nakamoto behind designing Bitcoin.

There is a number of obstacles to the large-scale use of cryptocurrencies for payment, such as:

  • The transaction speed is slow and the cost is high. No one will choose to buy a $5 cup of coffee, wait for 10 minutes for the money to go through and bear the $30 transaction fee;

  • Prices fluctuate greatly and goods or services are usually denominated in stable fiat currencies. Merchants are unwilling and should not bear the volatility risk of using cryptocurrencies while they have an option of receiving fiat currencies;

  • Multi-chain and multi-currency, just like every country has its own legal currency, each user holds different cryptocurrencies and has different needs;

  • Although more and more people around the world already own cryptocurrencies the number of users is still not big enough. There are even fewer merchants that support crypto payments. The lack of obvious demand leads to insufficient services provided. Only a few services provide crypto payments. That, in turn, leads to suppressed demand;

  • Different countries have different regulations related to cryptocurrencies.

However, the most significant difficulty is that with multiple chains, multiple coins, and multiple wallets, each country has its fiat currency and bank, like each user holds a different cryptocurrency. Some users use on-chain wallets, and more users store their assets in centralized exchanges (like Binance) or crypto financial products (like BlockFi). The cryptocurrency industry doesn't have agencies like Visa and MasterCard to connect different assets and wallets.

Now we build a "Crypto Visa/MasterCard" based on Mixin Network to connect cryptocurrency users and merchants; it's called: MixPay.

1. Pay with any wallet

MixPay supports any wallet on the payment side whether it is based on Layer 2 network, such as Mixin wallet, or an on-chain wallet like MetaMask and imToken, or a centralized exchange such as Binance and Coinbase. We support as many different wallet solutions as possible, leaving the choice to the users.

a. On-chain wallets

For mobile phone you can choose between on-chain wallet apps such as imToken or Trust Wallet to pay using crypto.
For computer you can use a browser plug-in wallet like MetaMask .
Of course, hardware wallets like Ledger are also supported by MixPay.

b. Layer 2 wallets

MixPay supports as many secure, easy-to-use, low-cost Layer 2 or Lightning Network wallets as possible, including but not limited to:

c. Centralized Exchanges

We also support centralized exchanges like Coinbase with millions of active users. You can authorize your Coinbase account to debit up to $1,000 per day to MixPay, and then choose any cryptocurrency stored in your Coinbase account to make no-cost payments.

d. Specific wallet

For cryptocurrencies like MobileCoin, we are very willing to partner up with them to allow Signal (a product with millions of active users) users to scan QR codes to buy coffee using MOB, just like the experience Mixin Messenger users have.

e. Third-party payment integration

MixPay will not only integrate with various wallets but also with third-party cryptocurrency payment platforms, such as Binance Pay, which means that merchants who use MixPay to receive payments will automatically accept Binance Pay and other third-party cryptocurrency payment platforms as well, giving consumers more options.

2. Separation of quote, settlement and payment

MixPay implements any choice of quote currency, settlement currency and payment currency in its architecture, including both crypto and fiat currencies. The combination of the three under this architecture can be useful in different scenarios.

a. Online and offline cryptocurrency payment

Whether it is an offline restaurant or an online e-commerce website, goods or services are usually priced in fiat currency. MixPay can help these scenarios to implement cryptocurrency payment, and settle in fiat currency or stablecoins instead. For example, in a coffee shop in Dubai a cup of coffee costs 20 Dirham. The customer can choose to pay for the cup of coffee with SHIB or any other cryptocurrency of their choice. No matter what crypto the customer chooses to spend , the merchant will receive their own designated currency according to their preferences, which can be fiat Dirham, or Dirham stablecoin (mAED), or even Bitcoin. Merchant does not need to bear any additional costs in this process.

b. Cross-chain instant exchange

Using the API provided by MixPay, it is very simple to build a cross-chain exchange platform, similar to changelly , changeNOW and others. In this scenario, when exchanging 1 ETH for BTC, both quote and payment currencies are ETH and the settlement asset is BTC .

c. Web3 Fiat Payment Gateway

Web2 users need to use a bridge between cryptocurrencies and fiat currencies in order to enter Web3. In NFT markets like OpenSea, the NFTs sold are usually denominated and settled in cryptocurrencies such as ETH. MixPay can help users to buy NFTs through fiat payments similar to what start-up companies such as MoonPay and Ramp have to offer.

3. Three account modes: individual, developer and multi-signature

MixPay is a decentralized payment solution. Merchants can immediately receive the user's payment and store it in the Mixin wallet where they possess the private key. MixPay does not have an access to the users' private keys.
On the settlement side, we support three wallet account modes: individual, developer, and multi-signature.

a. Individual account

Ordinary users usually prefer the simple and easy-to-use Mixin Messenger wallet to directly manage their assets. They only need to master a 6-digit PIN code to safely manage various assets. In this account mode, the user's payment will go directly to the recipient’s Mixin wallet.

b. Developer account

For developers, there are often higher requirements, such as continued programming of the money received, or simply the desire to automatically manage assets through the program. In this scenario, developer can register a Mixin bot, and the money received will be automatically settled into the bot account, and developers can use the Mixin API to further program the settled assets according to their needs, such as in the aforementioned cross-chain exchange platform to transfer the settled assets to the address specified by the user, or like PRSDigg to distribute the assets to contributors according to the rules.

c. Multi-signature account

In Web3 world, decentralized governance in the form of DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations) have become extremely popular. Smart contract technologies, such as Ethereum, allow people who have never met in real life to cooperate in a trustless way on the network. MixPay's multi-signature account model is very simple to use. Let ordinary users manage common assets in the way of DAO.

For instance, three people from different countries who have never met each other can build a service and sell it. They can use MixPay as a payment gateway, and all the money paid by the customer will go into their 3-2 multi-signature wallets based on Mixin. They can use any third-party multi-signature wallet such as CoWallet (Mixin ID: 7000103970) to manage these assets together, and at least two people need to sign in to transfer the assets.

When a disaster occurs somewhere in the world, there are always compassionate people who want to be able to donate and support the ones in need. There are also people who collect donations but trust can be an obstacle as it is difficult for donors to confirm whether the organizer is legitimate or just a scammer. Using MixPay multi-signature account for donations one can invite KOLs with trust to participate in multi-signature groups. For example, 10 KOLs are invited to form a multi-signature group of 11-7. This way the donation organizer will not be able to withdraw money without other group users' consent and thus trust will no longer be an issue.

It is even possible to create a donation SAAS (Software as a Service) platform through MixPay's API, and anyone can easily create a professional, secure and easy-to-use cryptocurrency donation website based on this platform.

4. Easy to use platform for ordinary users

MixPay's user friendly interface, including MixPay website (https://mixpay.me) and MixPay bot (Mixin ID: 7000104220), provides ordinary users with out-of-the-box services that can meet various needs in various scenarios without any programming.

a. Receipt QR code

Those who have been to China must have seen WeChat Pay QR codes on the streets and alleys of Chinese cities. Even the elderly who sell pancakes on the sidewalks use WeChat app in their smartphones to generate and print out payment QR codes for convenient online payment.

MixPay provides the same experience of payment but for cryptocurrency. Simply log in to our Mixin bot (or website), input required information (set quote currency, settlement currency, etc.), and you can generate a payment QR code to accept any cryptocurrency payment. The whole process takes no more than 5 minutes to get your business to embrace crypto which will take it to the next level.

You can create multiple payment QR codes within one account. Each payment code is unique. MixPay also provides appropriate statistics for each payment code.

b. Receipt link

Through MixPay's user friendly interface, it is possible not only to create a payment QR code but also a unique payment link:

You can place this link in your blog to start accepting cryptocurrency donations. We also provide corresponding components, such as a button, which makes it even easier for anyone to accept cryptocurrency payments and donations anytime and anywhere.

c. One-time receipt code

MixPay also provides an easy-to-use payment feature. Any user can create a bill to receive payment through MixPay's endpoint interface. E.g., I created a bill of 100 Dirham and settled it in Bitcoin:

This is a one-time link and only one person only once can pay using this link. It helps to avoid double payments.

d. Payment

Any user can pay anyone through MixPay's endpoint interface. All you need to know is their Mixin ID, phone number, email address, or just a Twitter account. Even if the other party does not have MixPay account, you can still pay them a certain amount. The recipient will be notified accordingly and accept the money in the currency of their choice, for example, if you pay 10 USDT, and the other party wishes to receive it in Bitcoin.

e. Plugin

If you are using a SAAS service like Shopify, we can provide you corresponding plugins. All you need is to install it in the Shopify app store and perform a simple configuration to provide customers with cryptocurrency payment services on your own e-commerce website. You will immediately receive the user's payment, free of any transaction fees on our side.

5. Developer integration-friendly

We provide simple out-of-the-box services for ordinary users, as well as friendly APIs and corresponding components for developers.

a. Link

The integration for developers is very simple. They just need to construct a link like this:

Specify the payee, quote amount, payment currency, settlement currency and other related information in the link. The user then can click the button to pay, and developer can loop query via the corresponding API to obtain payment results.

b. JS components

Developers can also integrate our JS components. That way the users will be able to complete payments without jumping to the interface. It will take about an hour for developers to integrate cryptocurrency payments in their applications.

import MixPay from 'mixpayjs'; 
new MixPay().pay(
{ quoteAmount: '10',
quoteAssetId: 'usd',
payeeId: '03e37a17-541c-49d9-aeac-44db76428a91',
settlementAssetId: 'c6d0c728-2624-429b-8e0d-d9d19b6592fa',
});

c. Customizable

We have opened up access to MixPay APIs so that developers can customize the payment process according to their needs. They can even build a new payment platform using our API.

6. Decentralization

All assets paid by customers will be automatically settled to the recipient's Mixin wallet. MixPay does not have an access to the user's assets.
At the same time, MixPay uses MTG (Mixin Trusted Group) technology to implement the whole process of decentralization. The assets paid by users are jointly managed by MTG nodes, and any third-party market maker can provide quotations for MixPay gateway asset exchange.

7. Solutions

Based on its features MixPay can be adapted and implemented in various scenarios through MixPay's API and endpoint interface.
a. E-commerce: On websites and in apps, to provide customers with cryptocurrency payment solutions for purchasing goods or services
b. Retail Store: Provide customers with cryptocurrency payment options in offline venues, such as restaurants, coffee shops, car washes, etc.
c. Tips: Accept cryptocurrency tips from fans in your blogs, channels or websites
d. Donations: Build a simple, easy-to-use, decentralized and trusted donation platform
e. Transfer: Easily transfer money to anyone, anytime and anywhere
f. Billing: Generate receipt link to receive money from anyone anytime
g. PoS systems: It only takes three steps and within one hour developers can integrate cryptocurrency payments in the PoS system
h. Buying and Selling Cryptocurrency: Build a cryptocurrency trading website to easily buy and sell cryptocurrency using any fiat currency
i. Cross-chain Instant Exchange: Build a cross-chain cryptocurrency flash exchange platform
j. Salary Payment: Pay salary to employees in cryptocurrency. Employees can choose between fiat currency and cryptocurrency. They will receive their salary in the currency of their choice.
k. Subscription: Periodical payments
l. Guaranteed Trades: Before the completion of the service, the buyer's payment is escrowed in a 3-2 multi-signature co-managed wallet of the platform bot, the buyer and the seller for programmable and secure payment in accordance with the contract. That will enable decentralized guaranteed trades
m. Decentralized Governance: Form partnerships to do business and jointly manage financial flows
n. Margin Trading: Guaranteeing transaction commitments in any cryptocurrency, such as participating in auction margins
o. System Integration: Integrate cryptocurrency payment options into your own platform and services, provide value-added services to existing customers, and charge a certain fee, such as integrating into your own aggregated payment platform
p. Web3 Fiat Payment Gateway: Buy NFTs, ENS domain names and other crypto assets with fiat
q. Cryptocurrency Payment Platform: Build a new cryptocurrency payment platform based on MixPay API, providing localized, industrialized and scenario-based cryptocurrency payment services
r. Cryptocurrency Gift Cards: Create an anonymous cryptocurrency gift card just like an Amazon gift card
s. Vending Machines: Integrate MixPay into vending machines. Simply scan the QR code to pay
t. Cryptocurrency Credit Cards: Issuing Visa and MasterCard cryptocurrency credit cards
u. NFC: Payments can be made by contacting smartphones using the NFC feature
v. Stablecoin Payment: Various stablecoin payments on various blockchains, specified blockchain specified stablecoin settlement
w. Swap Based on Mixin: Based on Mixin and MixPay to build a decentralized instant exchange platform with no service fee and instant arrival

Conclusion

MixPay aims to provide a flexible Web3 payment gateway with a flexible API. What MixPay is capable of is limited only by the creativity of its developers.

Mix means mix anything:

  • Mix all Cryptos & Fiats

  • Mix all Chains

  • Mix all Wallets( including on-chain wallets, centralized wallets, and exchanges)

  • Mix all Payments integrators

  • Mix all Cryptocurrency holders

If we can achieve our vision, the following will happen:

  • For cryptocurrency holders, using any wallet is a bank account, and cryptocurrency holdings will become real money, a simpler, easier-to-use payment experience than WeChat Pay and any other payment method

  • For merchants, it is a lower cost of payment to provide a wider range of services without borders

  • For wallets and exchanges, it will be like a bank, providing more services to users without having to withdraw their money

  • For public chains and Tokens, users can use cryptocurrency to pay directly

  • For PoS and other payment integrators, it means more and better services and higher revenue for merchants

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