Share this article

Wirex Eyes Mainstream DeFi With Fireblocks Integration

Now your mum can start providing liquidity to Uniswap, said Wirex CEO Pavel Matveev.

Updated May 9, 2023, 3:20 a.m. Published Jun 23, 2021, 8:00 a.m.

Crypto-friendly payments app Wirex intends to bring decentralized finance (DeFi) to a mass audience.

STORY CONTINUES BELOW

Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters

By signing up, you will receive emails about CoinDesk products and you agree to our terms of use and privacy policy.

Announced Wednesday, Wirex is launching X-Accounts, a new service that offers users the chance to earn up to 10% interest on crypto holdings and 16% on fiat funds, in a partnership with custody and infrastructure firm Fireblocks.

Enterprises with a taste for cryptocurrency are clearly attracted to the rapidly moving DeFi space with its steroid-enhanced yield potential. Behind its hassle-free custodial platform, Wirex is tapping DeFi majors Aave, Uniswap, MakerDAO and 1inch.

Customers can earn passive income from DeFi, by providing liquidity to platforms like Uniswap and lending on Aave, said Wirex CEO Pavel Matveev, adding that his mum could use the service.

“The income you can generate with DeFi pools and lending is much higher than the centralized model where you use institutional lenders to generate interest,” said Matveev. “The other way people earn in DeFi is by yield farming, but that’s outside our risk appetite and not suitable for this product.”

In terms of risk, the partnership with Fireblocks will give Wirex up to $30 million insurance on crypto assets for its DeFi service, Matveev said.

“Maximizing digital asset security is extremely important with this level of operational scale and efficiency, especially when it comes to DeFi,” Fireblocks CEO Michael Shaulov said in a statement.

Wirex DeFi Fireblocks

Ian Allison

Ian Allison is a senior reporter at CoinDesk, focused on institutional and enterprise adoption of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. Prior to that, he covered fintech for the International Business Times in London and Newsweek online. He won the State Street Data and Innovation journalist of the year award in 2017, and was runner up the following year. He also earned CoinDesk an honourable mention in the 2020 SABEW Best in Business awards. His November 2022 FTX scoop, which brought down the exchange and its boss Sam Bankman-Fried, won a Polk award, Loeb award and New York Press Club award. Ian graduated from the University of Edinburgh. He holds ETH.