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Finextra
a day ago
- Business
- Finextra
AstroPay launches platform to let companies embed financial services
AstroPay, the financial operating system trusted by millions of users globally, today launched its boldest product yet: AstroPay Platform. 0 This content is provided by an external author without editing by Finextra. It expresses the views and opinions of the author. For the first time, any company—fintech or not—can build and launch their own global financial products using the same infrastructure that powers AstroPay's consumer wallet. AstroPay Platform gives businesses instant access to a full-stack financial backend: multicurrency wallets, local bank accounts, global and local card issuing, checkout, user onboarding, fraud controls, compliance, and FX—delivered through a developer-first interface. This marks AstroPay's evolution from serving consumers directly to enabling other companies to build their own financial services using AstroPay's infrastructure. Businesses can now leverage AstroPay's established connections to multiple local and international payment schemes, along with its multicurrency wallet, card issuing capabilities, and regulatory compliance framework across multiple jurisdictions. 'We've built the financial infrastructure that powers our global wallet. Now, we're opening it to the world,' said Marc Sacal, CEO of AstroPay. 'What used to take years of licensing, contracting, and technical effort can now be done in weeks under your own brand, with our infrastructure doing the heavy lifting.' A New Category of Financial Infrastructure AstroPay Platform is not a white-label wallet. It's a turnkey financial backend: the licensed, compliant, payment-connected infrastructure already proven across dozens of markets and payment systems. With a single integration, businesses gain access to: • Multicurrency Infrastructure: Native support for major currencies with real-time foreign exchange, enabling any business to offer users seamless currency conversion and global balance management. • Local Accounts and Payment Rails: Current support includes local receiving accounts in key markets—including PIX (Brazil), CVU (Argentina), IBANs (Europe), and UK sort codes—allowing users to send and receive funds like a local. This is just the beginning, with many more markets and rails on the horizon. • Card Issuing and Management: Businesses can issue virtual and physical cards—local or global—to their end users. Cards are branded and powered by Visa or Mastercard, with support for mobile wallets, KYC, and fraud management built in. • Accept AstroPay: Businesses can integrate AstroPay's proprietary checkout, accepting the AstroPay wallet directly as a payment method. This enables one-click payments from millions of users and in-app promotion within the AstroPay ecosystem. • Regulatory Compliance Framework: AstroPay's infrastructure includes KYC, AML, sanctions screening, fraud detection, and licensing across multiple jurisdictions, reducing the need for partners to build regulatory operations in-house. • Real-time Processing and APIs: Modern API architecture with real-time processing and developer tools allows seamless deployment, scalability, and customization. AstroPay Platform enables any company to operate like a fintech—whether launching wallets and cards, offering global payouts, or embedding payments into existing products. From creator platforms and travel apps to payroll tools and B2B marketplaces, businesses can now embed global financial services under their own brand, with AstroPay managing the underlying complexity. From Years to Days: Accelerating Financial Innovation Traditional approaches to building cross-border financial services require companies to establish relationships with dozens of payment providers, navigate complex regulatory requirements across multiple countries, and build sophisticated currency and risk management systems. This process takes years and requires significant capital investment before generating revenue - a timeline that has limited fintech innovation. AstroPay Platform compresses this timeline to weeks by offering a turnkey stack built on proven infrastructure, already operating across dozens of markets and integrated with multiple local and international payment schemes. 'Companies no longer need to piece together banking, compliance, and payments from scratch,' said Sacal. 'AstroPay Platform eliminates friction, reduces time-to-market, and makes sophisticated financial infrastructure available to any business.' AstroPay Platform supports a wide spectrum of business models—from fintech disruptors to non-financial enterprises embedding financial features for the first time. By abstracting complexity into modular APIs, the platform enables companies to choose only the features they need and go live in record time. AstroPay Platform is already in use by early partners across Latin America and Europe, powering production workloads for payouts, cards, and local account infrastructure. Key use cases include: • Retailers and Consumer Apps: Retailers, loyalty programs, and consumer-facing apps can embed financial tools like digital wallets and prepaid cards to increase engagement, drive repeat purchases, and own more of the customer lifecycle—all without becoming financial institutions themselves. • Regional Fintechs and Superapps: Local fintech apps that have built strong domestic traction can now expand globally without building new infrastructure or acquiring additional licenses. With AstroPay Platform, they can offer users international bank accounts, global cards, and cross-border payment features—turning regional offerings into global products in a matter of weeks. • E-commerce and Marketplace Platforms: Digital marketplaces can offer sellers the ability to get paid in their local currency, while enabling buyers to pay using their preferred method—including AstroPay Wallet. With real-time FX and embedded account infrastructure, platforms can localize seller and buyer experiences without geographic or currency constraints. • Content and Creator Platforms: Platforms serving creators, streamers, and digital talent can provide their users with immediate access to earnings through embedded wallets, branded cards, and instant cash-out via local rails. This eliminates reliance on traditional banking and improves speed, trust, and retention—particularly in underbanked regions. • Payroll and Workforce Platforms: Companies serving global and remote workforces can embed multicurrency wallets, assign local receiving accounts (like PIX in Brazil or IBANs in Europe), and automate instant payouts in local currency. This allows platforms to offer faster, cheaper, and more transparent salary distribution—whether to freelancers, contractors, or employees worldwide.
Business Wire
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
AstroPay Launches AstroPay Platform to Let Any Company Embed Global Financial Services at Scale
LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AstroPay, the financial operating system trusted by millions of users globally, today launched its boldest product yet: AstroPay Platform. For the first time, any company—fintech or not—can build and launch their own global financial products using the same infrastructure that powers AstroPay's consumer wallet. AstroPay Platform gives businesses instant access to a full-stack financial backend: multicurrency wallets, local bank accounts, global and local card issuing, checkout, user onboarding, fraud controls, compliance, and FX—delivered through a developer-first interface. This marks AstroPay's evolution from serving consumers directly to enabling other companies to build their own financial services using AstroPay's infrastructure. Businesses can now leverage AstroPay's established connections to multiple local and international payment schemes, along with its multicurrency wallet, card issuing capabilities, and regulatory compliance framework across multiple jurisdictions. 'We've built the financial infrastructure that powers our global wallet. Now, we're opening it to the world,' said Marc Sacal, CEO of AstroPay. 'What used to take years of licensing, contracting, and technical effort can now be done in weeks under your own brand, with our infrastructure doing the heavy lifting.' A New Category of Financial Infrastructure AstroPay Platform is not a white-label wallet. It's a turnkey financial backend: the licensed, compliant, payment-connected infrastructure already proven across dozens of markets and payment systems. With a single integration, businesses gain access to: Multicurrency Infrastructure: Native support for major currencies with real-time foreign exchange, enabling any business to offer users seamless currency conversion and global balance management. Local Accounts and Payment Rails: Current support includes local receiving accounts in key markets—including PIX (Brazil), CVU (Argentina), IBANs (Europe), and UK sort codes—allowing users to send and receive funds like a local. This is just the beginning, with many more markets and rails on the horizon. Card Issuing and Management: Businesses can issue virtual and physical cards—local or global—to their end users. Cards are branded and powered by Visa or Mastercard, with support for mobile wallets, KYC, and fraud management built in. Accept AstroPay: Businesses can integrate AstroPay's proprietary checkout, accepting the AstroPay wallet directly as a payment method. This enables one-click payments from millions of users and in-app promotion within the AstroPay ecosystem. Regulatory Compliance Framework: AstroPay's infrastructure includes KYC, AML, sanctions screening, fraud detection, and licensing across multiple jurisdictions, reducing the need for partners to build regulatory operations in-house. Real-time Processing and APIs: Modern API architecture with real-time processing and developer tools allows seamless deployment, scalability, and customization. AstroPay Platform enables any company to operate like a fintech—whether launching wallets and cards, offering global payouts, or embedding payments into existing products. From creator platforms and travel apps to payroll tools and B2B marketplaces, businesses can now embed global financial services under their own brand, with AstroPay managing the underlying complexity. From Years to Days: Accelerating Financial Innovation Traditional approaches to building cross-border financial services require companies to establish relationships with dozens of payment providers, navigate complex regulatory requirements across multiple countries, and build sophisticated currency and risk management systems. This process takes years and requires significant capital investment before generating revenue - a timeline that has limited fintech innovation. AstroPay Platform compresses this timeline to weeks by offering a turnkey stack built on proven infrastructure, already operating across dozens of markets and integrated with multiple local and international payment schemes. 'Companies no longer need to piece together banking, compliance, and payments from scratch,' said Sacal. 'AstroPay Platform eliminates friction, reduces time-to-market, and makes sophisticated financial infrastructure available to any business.' AstroPay Platform supports a wide spectrum of business models—from fintech disruptors to non-financial enterprises embedding financial features for the first time. By abstracting complexity into modular APIs, the platform enables companies to choose only the features they need and go live in record time. AstroPay Platform is already in use by early partners across Latin America and Europe, powering production workloads for payouts, cards, and local account infrastructure. Key use cases include: Retailers and Consumer Apps: Retailers, loyalty programs, and consumer-facing apps can embed financial tools like digital wallets and prepaid cards to increase engagement, drive repeat purchases, and own more of the customer lifecycle—all without becoming financial institutions themselves. Regional Fintechs and Superapps: Local fintech apps that have built strong domestic traction can now expand globally without building new infrastructure or acquiring additional licenses. With AstroPay Platform, they can offer users international bank accounts, global cards, and cross-border payment features—turning regional offerings into global products in a matter of weeks. E-commerce and Marketplace Platforms: Digital marketplaces can offer sellers the ability to get paid in their local currency, while enabling buyers to pay using their preferred method—including AstroPay Wallet. With real-time FX and embedded account infrastructure, platforms can localize seller and buyer experiences without geographic or currency constraints. Content and Creator Platforms: Platforms serving creators, streamers, and digital talent can provide their users with immediate access to earnings through embedded wallets, branded cards, and instant cash-out via local rails. This eliminates reliance on traditional banking and improves speed, trust, and retention—particularly in underbanked regions. Payroll and Workforce Platforms: Companies serving global and remote workforces can embed multicurrency wallets, assign local receiving accounts (like PIX in Brazil or IBANs in Europe), and automate instant payouts in local currency. This allows platforms to offer faster, cheaper, and more transparent salary distribution—whether to freelancers, contractors, or employees worldwide. AstroPay Platform removes the traditional barriers to financial innovation—licensing, regulation, payments, FX—and makes sophisticated financial services deployable in days. Its real-world infrastructure, already powering millions of users, is now available to every company. Companies can begin integration immediately through comprehensive documentation and developer resources at with dedicated technical support throughout the onboarding process. About AstroPay AstroPay is a digital wallet and proprietary payment method used by millions of users and accepted by thousands of businesses globally. With a multicurrency wallet, integrated cards, and embedded payments, AstroPay enables users to send, receive, and spend instantly. Now, through AstroPay Platform, any company can access the infrastructure behind the wallet and launch global financial products with speed and scale. Learn more at
Yahoo
26-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
AstroPay expands multicurrency wallet to Latin American countries
Fintech company AstroPay has expanded its multicurrency wallet to several Latin American countries, including Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, and Chile. The move aims to enable digital workers and global travellers across the region to send, receive, and spend money more quickly and at a lower cost, bypassing the traditional banking systems, the company said. The company's approach involves direct licencing, forming partnerships with financial institutions, and leveraging international regulatory frameworks to enable global transactions. This allows individuals and businesses in Latin America to manage their finances with storage and conversion features, receiving and withdrawing international payments. The company claims that the wallet provides lower transaction costs compared to traditional financial services, as well as 'competitive exchange rates'. Moreover, the expansion is expected to aid businesses in exploring new markets and refining their financial strategies, the company noted. AstroPay CEO Marc Sacal said: 'Latin America welcomes millions of visitors every year – tourists, remote workers, and digital nomads – all of whom need an intuitive, digital-first way to pay like locals. At the same time, the region's online workforce is expanding rapidly, with more people earning income from abroad than ever before. 'Traditional banking systems weren't built for this reality. Our multicurrency wallet bridges this gap, giving users a fast, low-cost way to receive and spend money across borders – without the usual friction.' In January, AstroPay secured a Payment Institution (PI) licence from the Central Bank of Brazil to extend its financial services to Brazilian users and businesses. Set up in 2009, the UK-based company offers cross border payment solutions and multicurrency wallets etc. "AstroPay expands multicurrency wallet to Latin American countries " was originally created and published by Electronic Payments International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
AstroPay Expands Access to Multicurrency Wallet Across Latin America
Now available in six Latin American markets, wallet empowers freelancers, travelers, and entrepreneurs with simplified international payments and low-cost currency conversion. LONDON, March 25, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AstroPay, a global leader in digital financial solutions, today announced the availability of its global multicurrency wallet across Latin America with an expanded presence in Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Peru, Mexico, and Chile. With this expansion, AstroPay is giving digital workers and global travelers a faster, lower-cost way to send, receive, and spend money without relying on slow and expensive banking systems. Millions of people across Latin America – remote workers, business owners, and travelers – need a better way to move money across borders. AstroPay's multicurrency wallet is redefining cross-border payments with real-time conversion at the best rates – eliminating hidden fees, long waits, and outdated banking barriers. By leveraging a combination of local licensing, banking partnerships, and internationally recognized regulatory frameworks, AstroPay offers a frictionless and compliant financial experience, allowing users to transact with confidence wherever they are. "Latin America welcomes millions of visitors every year – tourists, remote workers, and digital nomads – all of whom need an intuitive, digital-first way to pay like locals. At the same time, the region's online workforce is expanding rapidly, with more people earning income from abroad than ever before," said Marc Sacal, CEO of AstroPay. "Traditional banking systems weren't built for this reality. Our multicurrency wallet bridges this gap, giving users a fast, low-cost way to receive and spend money across borders – without the usual friction." AstroPay multicurrency wallet users enjoy a range of financial benefits. Individuals and businesses can receive and withdraw international payments from global clients and platforms with ease, eliminating common transaction hurdles. With multi-currency storage and conversion capabilities, travelers and digital nomads can efficiently manage their money while benefiting from competitive exchange rates. AstroPay also allows users to make cross-border transactions effortlessly while benefiting from best-in-class foreign exchange rates, ensuring they get the most value for their money while spending abroad. Users also experience faster and lower-cost transactions, avoiding the high fees and slow processing times that often accompany traditional banking methods. This expansion strengthens AstroPay's global connectivity, linking Latin America with Europe and beyond – ensuring users can take advantage of borderless financial solutions to grow their businesses, access new markets, and optimize their financial strategies. Whether through direct licensing, partnerships with established financial institutions, or leveraging internationally recognized regulatory frameworks, AstroPay is setting a new standard for global transactions, ensuring users can move money instantly without the usual banking headaches. As Latin America experiences a surge in digital commerce, remote work, and international travel, AstroPay's global multicurrency wallet equips users with the financial flexibility to transact seamlessly – whether spending abroad, managing cross-border income, or optimizing currency exchange with best-in-class rates. For more information about AstroPay's global wallet, visit About AstroPay AstroPay is a global financial technology company revolutionizing how people manage their money in a borderless economy. Established in 2009, AstroPay empowers users with seamless, secure, and innovative payment solutions designed to transcend geographical and financial boundaries. Our mission is to unlock financial freedom by enabling individuals and businesses to save, send, and spend money without restrictions. AstroPay combines cutting-edge technology with a commitment to security and compliance, delivering a user-centric experience that simplifies global financial transactions. Whether you're shopping internationally, receiving payments as a global freelancer, or expanding your business into new markets, AstroPay provides the tools you need to thrive in today's interconnected world. At AstroPay, we are not just shaping the future of finance; we are making financial freedom a reality for everyone. View source version on Contacts Media Contact Fitz BarthCOMMAND for AstroPaymedia@
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
AstroPay Continues Global Expansion With Payment Institution License for Multicurrency Wallet in Brazil
SíO PAULO, January 30, 2025--(BUSINESS WIRE)--AstroPay, a global leader in digital financial solutions, is redefining financial connectivity in Brazil with its strategic expansion and acquiring a coveted Payment Institution (PI) license issued by the Central Bank of Brazil. This license is from the Central Bank of Brazil, underscoring AstroPay's commitment to delivering secure, compliant, and user-friendly cross-border payment solutions. AstroPay is poised to bring faster, simpler, and more innovative financial services for Brazil's local and international users and businesses, solidifying AstroPay's position as the go-to platform for seamless, secure cross-border financial management. AstroPay's "Pix for Foreigners" allows international visitors to make instant payments in Brazilian reais, giving small businesses—from beach vendors to market stalls—a frictionless way to transact without the excessive fees associated with credit cards. In addition, AstroPay's global card also allows users to manage their money securely across borders, access highly competitive exchange rates, and spend freely without unnecessary complexity. The company's streamlined approach to cross-border payments delivers substantial savings for users. For example, AstroPay's competitive fees enable travelers spending USD 2,000 on a trip to Brazil to save up to BRL 1,000 compared to conventional credit cards, with conversion rates as low as 1.5% and an IOF (financial transaction tax) of just 0.38%. Marc Sacal, CEO of AstroPay, commented, "This expansion marks a pivotal milestone for AstroPay as we align our services with Brazil's regulatory framework and deliver compliant, secure, and innovative financial solutions. By working closely with local and international regulators, we aim to empower individuals and businesses globally to take control of their finances. This isn't just about payments—it's about building a foundation of trust and efficiency to create meaningful opportunities for users in Brazil and beyond." AstroPay has also strengthened its local presence by expanding its team in Brazil and tailoring its services to meet the unique needs of Brazilians and the growing community of expats who are choosing Brazil as a destination. With this expansion, AstroPay reaffirms its mission to provide individuals and businesses with financial freedom, enabling everyone to spend, save, and send money without limits. This expansion underscores AstroPay's commitment to revolutionizing the way people and businesses interact with money in today's interconnected world. Whether you're a business tapping into Brazil's vibrant economy or a user navigating multiple currencies, AstroPay is bridging the gap with speed, security, and reliability. For more information about AstroPay's solutions in Brazil and beyond, visit About AstroPay AstroPay is a global financial technology company revolutionizing how people manage their money in a borderless economy. Established in 2009, AstroPay empowers users with seamless, secure, and innovative payment solutions designed to transcend geographical and financial boundaries. Our mission is to unlock financial freedom by enabling individuals and businesses to save, send, and spend money without restrictions. AstroPay combines cutting-edge technology with a commitment to security and compliance, delivering a user-centric experience that simplifies global financial transactions. Whether you're shopping internationally, receiving payments as a global freelancer, or expanding your business into new markets, AstroPay provides the tools you need to thrive in today's interconnected world. At AstroPay, we are not just shaping the future of finance; we are making financial freedom a reality for everyone. View source version on Contacts Media Contact: Camille StephensCMAND for AstroPaymedia@ Sign in to access your portfolio
