Cyprus has positioned itself as a crypto-friendly nation, with companies like LegionPay offering the infrastructure that businesses need to accept bitcoin payments. The platform helps merchants proces
Cyprus has positioned itself as a crypto-friendly nation, with companies like LegionPay offering the infrastructure that businesses need to accept bitcoin payments. The platform helps merchants process bitcoin instead of fiat currencies, addressing a gap in the market for businesses engaged in cross-border trade. Smaller nations depend on these transactions to reach global markets.
Andrew Anastasiou, who co-founded LegionPay, sees demand for crypto growing in commerce. "Demand for cryptocurrency in global trade is exploding," Anastasiou said. "But most merchants don't have the means to accept Bitcoin as a legal payment." He explained what LegionPay does: "Few merchants, particularly smaller ones, are able to accept Bitcoin as legal payment. LegionPay makes this accessible to almost any business, so long as compliance requirements are met."
Fiat transfers cost about ten times as much as crypto transactions, due to processing fees and service charges. Wire transfers take three days to clear, with additional delays if problems surface. LegionPay finishes transactions in ten minutes.
"LegionPay usually completes payments in 10 minutes," a company representative said. "And, working on the blockchain, there is no bank, or third party involved to slow things down."
The industry's growth has drawn regulatory scrutiny. Last week, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission warned investors to avoid seven unlicensed platforms: fxg.market, 247firstinvest.com, keyoncapital.com, procloudoptions.com, cryptotradecentr.com, fxgrowcapital.com, and meritkapital.com. The SEC said these entities "do not belong to an entity which has been granted an authorization for the provision of investment services and/or the performance of investment activities."
Regulators are working to build consumer trust and direct people toward licensed providers. Those who work with authorized operators receive protection through the Investor Compensation Fund, which covers losses if a licensed firm fails to meet its obligations.
Cyprus, despite its size, has built a crypto regulatory framework that enables legitimate businesses while filtering out unregistered operators. That balance between openness and oversight has made the island a destination for crypto companies and investors.
