Crypto Payments Will Be ‘Invisible’ in 3 Years, Says Mercuryo Cofounder

As crypto moves from a hyped niche to real-world utility, one of the most important tasks is making it usable in our daily lives. Mercuryo, a global payments infrastructure company powering fiat-to-crypto rails for the likes of MetaMask, Revolut, Ledger, and Trust Wallet, says demand for compliant crypto payment solutions is rising despite tighter regulations.

In this interview with Cryptonews, Mercuryo co-founder and Chief Operating Officer Greg Waisman argues that compliance is now a competitive advantage as traditional banks look to embed crypto directly into their services. He also talked about zero-knowledge (ZK) proofs and how the technology could align privacy with regulatory demands for faster payments.

Yet the biggest hurdle to mass adoption is usability. New research shows a widening access gap between high-income and lower-income users, many of whom face high fees of up to 20%. Waisman spoke about how to close this gap by making crypto payments seamless, affordable, and ultimately invisible to the end user.

Compliance As a ‘Competitive Advantage’

Cyptonews: I understand that Mercuryo supports payment infrastructure for some of the biggest names in crypto. How has demand for fiat-to-crypto rails evolved amid tighter regulation and shifting investor sentiment?

Greg Waisman: When we started Mercuryo in 2018, there was a huge gap between interest in crypto and the ability to actually use it. It was incredibly difficult and expensive for people or businesses to move between fiat and crypto. Buying $100 worth of crypto could even cost $12 in fees. We saw this inefficiency as an opportunity. Fast forward to today: Fees of under 3% are commonplace and global infrastructure has become far more mature.

A more regulated market means more reliable providers, better standards and stronger user protections.

Demand for crypto-to-fiat technology has only grown with increased regulation. What’s changed is who is driving that demand. Fintechs, payment companies and even traditional financial institutions looking to embed compliant crypto payment options directly into their services.

The sentiment isn’t shifting away from crypto, it’s just focusing on responsible and regulated participation in the crypto market. As the regulatory environment continues evolving, institutional players will continue to recognise the need for secure and licensed infrastructure.

CN: You’ve described compliance as a “competitive advantage.” How do you use regulation to push the industry forward instead of holding it back? In other words, what sort of frameworks can meet compliance standards while remaining accessible to regular users?

GW: To compete in a complex regulated market you need good compliance. Regulation sets the rules of engagement, and a company that fully and immediately embraces these rules will be the one that scales sustainably. That is why I don’t see regulation as so much of a constraint. Taking a proactive approach regarding regulations can also be something of a competitive edge.

The goal is to meet the required standards of KYC and AML while keeping the user experience intuitive. When transparency and safety are built into the foundation, crypto becomes widely accessible. Compliance and accessibility can coexist and that’s how trust is created across the ecosystem.

ZK Proofs Make Crypto Payments Secure

CN: Zero-knowledge proofs are one of the most hyped technologies in crypto right now. What practical benefits do you see for compliance and privacy?

GW: Zero-knowledge technology could be a breakthrough for how compliance and privacy can finally work together. It allows verification without exposure, proving that a user meets KYC standards, for example, without revealing sensitive information.

This is important for many reasons, one being the potential to build next-generation fraud controls. Working with new technology always brings new risks, and fraud evolves with innovation, so privacy-preserving tools like ZK proofs can help us reduce fraud while protecting data.

If you think about Web3’s trust problem, users want security, and regulators want transparency. Zero-knowledge proofs allow both sides to win. That’s the kind of innovation that makes the crypto industry mature, and many think it has the potential to become a cornerstone of how compliance and innovation work together in crypto.

CN: Bridging fiat and crypto is often the hardest part of building user-friendly products. What’s the missing link most developers or fintechs overlook?

GW: A mistake developers can make is assuming the bridge is only about perfecting the technology. That’s disregarding the experiential aspects. Many crypto products are still designed by crypto people for crypto people and that can be a barrier for some.

There is an argument to be made that a true bridge allows people to buy, sell, and spend crypto using traditional payment methods, cards, bank transfers, and mobile wallets directly inside Web3 apps. When the experience feels familiar, the system becomes accessible.

CN: What’s been the biggest challenge in getting traditional banks or payment processors comfortable with blockchain tech?

GW: Building trust with traditional institutions takes time and proof. Banks and processors move cautiously because their reputations depend on security and predictability.

Blockchain payments can operate under the same risk management principles as traditional finance and, in some cases, even improve them. When institutions understand that crypto rails can be fully auditable, regulated, and integrated with their existing systems, reservations subside and this can result in new partnerships.

Rich and Poor Divide Undercuts Mass Adoption

CN: The crypto industry has long promised mass adoption, but it’s still not quite there. What needs to happen next for that leap to finally occur?

GW: The technology is ready, but the experience isn’t always optimal. Many people sometimes still find crypto difficult to use.

Earlier this year, we partnered with Web3 research firm Protocol Theory on a nationally representative study, “Beyond Early Adopters: What It Takes for Crypto to Matter in Everyday Life.”

The findings show a divide between how affluent and lower-income Americans engage with crypto. More than half of U.S. adults earning over $100K own digital assets, compared to just one in four earning under $40K. Only 13% of Americans say wallets are easy to use, and just 16% have ever seen one used in real life.

Instead of leveling the playing field, crypto risks repeating old patterns of financial exclusion. Lower-income users can sometimes find themselves being funneled into high-cost options like Bitcoin ATMs, sometimes paying up to 20% in fees, while wealthier users enjoy cheaper, safer access.

Mass adoption requires usability and trust: safe payments, legal clarity, and products simple enough to use for anyone, regardless of technological literacy. Adoption will accelerate when the experience feels familiar, affordable, and fair.

CN: With so many payment startups entering Web3, how do you make Mercuryo stand out?

GW: We don’t try to compete with exchanges or wallets, we power them. Mercuryo is a pure B2B company, and we’re proud of that. Our mission is to enable others to offer seamless crypto and fiat on and off-ramps without needing to build the complex infrastructure themselves.

Our solutions operate behind the scenes across Web2, Web3, and TradFi. I often describe myself as the voice of focus, because we stick to what we do best: compliant, scalable, global payment infrastructure.

Crypto Payments Will Become Seamless In 3 Years

CN: Three years from now, what will the payment experience look like? Will users even realize they’re interacting with crypto under the hood?

GW: In three years, the payments experience will be on its way to being completely seamless. In some cases, users may not need to know whether a transaction happens in crypto or fiat, it will all run under one intuitive layer.

As more apps embed payments that convert automatically between crypto and fiat, depending on user or merchant needs, the distinction between “traditional” and “crypto” payments will fade.

Over time, I firmly believe crypto will become a new layer of financial life, not a replacement for existing systems.

CN: Where do you see the biggest growth opportunities for fiat-to-crypto infrastructure: retail users, businesses, or cross-border payments?

GW: Emerging markets and underserved users, whether in Africa or lower-income communities in the U.S., are where crypto can have the greatest impact. The data from our Protocol Theory research confirms that accessibility gaps still exist even in developed economies.

In regions where traditional banking access is limited, on and off-ramps give users the ability to participate in the digital economy with nothing more than an internet connection. Finance should be borderless and accessible to everyone, regardless of geography or income level.

CN: And if you had to describe the “future of payments” in one sentence, what would it be?

GW: Payments will become invisible, borderless, seamless, and powered by technology that users don’t even really have to think about.

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