Terra, a blockchain company setting up the next new generation payment service, announced a deal with Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia’s capital, to officially launch quick money transfers and lending.
Terra’s payment solution will first be launched in the Nalaikh District of Ulaanbaatar City through a pilot scheme with plans to grow throughout the city. The program is scheduled to start within six months.
The Fintech market in Mongolia is still in its nascent stage, but has witnessed a series of successful and popular IPOs from domestic start-ups that show the growing potential of the market.
In response to this commercial success, the Government of Mongolia has enacted liberal regulations to expedite the growth of start- ups and financial technology companies, for instance the Central Bank of Mongolia endorsing the launch of its first domestic digital currency license.
With government support, Terra intends to streamline and safeguard the payment process with the touch of a button and to provide other financial services, such as quick and relatively low-cost transfers and loans.
The partnership is aimed at reforming Mongolia’s primarily cash-based infrastructure by making digital payments more transparent and affordable. The Nalaikh City pilot program will launch two core features: peer-to-peer (P2P) payments to enable instant transfers between customers of various banks and mobile payments to construct a secure, contactless payment infrastructure.
As an inevitable next step, Terra will join hands with the local government to replace the current payment method for utility bills and government subsidies with its stablecoin. The effort will be supervised by a joint task force made up of core players from Terra, Nalaikh District and XGround, a Fintech firm with a solid base in Mongolia. Founded by a team of finance, business and blockchain experts, Terra designs a cryptocurrency that will power the new generation payment system deployed on a blockchain.
Daniel Shin, Co-founder of Terra, said “Facilitating P2P and recurring utility payments with Terra are important first steps towards building a blockchain-based financial infrastructure in Mongolia. From there, we will build out a wider range of financial services, reforming the remittance, loan, and overall banking industry.”
Radnaabazar Choijinsambuu, Governor, Nalaikh District of the Capital City, said “We believe this pilot programme with Terra will reform how the people of Nalaikh City make everyday payments. It will contribute to the development and enrichment of the nation’s digital payment infrastructure, while creating a new online platform to easily share information and offering great opportunities to connect with our citizens through advanced technology.”
It utilizes a dual token structure to completely collateralize the stablecoin Terra with a decentralized asset and a second token dubbed Luna. Nalaikh City is 36 km east of Ulaanbaatar Capital City and has a population of approximately 40,000 people.
It is the first industrial hub in Mongolia which has been the home of the first government owned coal mining company since 1922. The industry continues to expand rapidly today, with the City promoting other growing sectors, such as agriculture and consumer goods manufacturing.
In full support of Mongolia’s 2016-2020 Action Program clearly aimed at rejuvenating the economy and fostering growth, Nalaikh City focuses on significantly increasing Internet access and promoting financial inclusion for its residents.
