“The democratic thing about entering DeFi is that the barriers are much lower.” This phrase largely reflects the vision of the Xcapit team, an Argentine company that offers investment plans with cryptocurrencies to enter decentralized finance (DeFi, for its acronym in English) with automated models based on artificial intelligence. José Ignacio Trajtenberg, the CEO of the company from the province of Córdoba, spoke with CriptoNoticias and explained the bases that support its activities.
First of all, and one of the main missions that this company is designed in the medium and long term, is to generate interest and knowledge in the public to get closer and be encouraged to enter the world of finance and crypto assets. The good news for Xcapit is that the first steps have been taken, and firmly.
In mid-June 2021, CriptoNoticias reported on the contribution that the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) would provide selected businesses to promote access to education and financial services. Xcapit was the chosen firm in Argentina and received a donation of 44 ether (ETH) to specify “a long-term plan with actions in different directions”, as described its president.
Thus, through an alliance with strategic partners (including the traditional financial market), the Cordoba company will seek to disseminate, in secondary schools and universities in Latin America, topics such as savings , investments and different types of assets. From the field of crypto assets, RSK, Binance and Paxful committed to collaborating in the organization of talks on startups based on blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
In Trajtenberg’s own words, the premise is « be catalysts of interest in financial education and remove the idea that it is only for some. To do this, he says, “we want to generate content that is easy to digest, with content such as pills, for example, in TikTok video format, plays or video games. Long courses will come later, but first you have to generate interest ».
“This should be understood as an engine for human well-being. The person who has a correct financial management can maximize the achievement of goals in his life. ”
– José Trajtenberg, CEO of Xcapit –
Is it risky to invest in DeFi?
One of the main doubts of the general public has to do with the risk involved in placing savings in any investment plan on this type of platform.
«Buying a cryptocurrency has no risk, the risk is The volatility. Afterwards, investing or choosing one of the investment products we offer allows you to reduce your risk. There is a stop loss and a take profit level that determines it each person “, points out José Trajtenberg in this regard.
Despite the relevance of these benefits, none compares with the ease of entry for all types of investors, in his vision: “The democratic thing about entering DeFi is that the barriers are much lower. The capital needed to invest is drastically less than that needed for the traditional financial world, “he adds.
However, Trajtenberg is also clear that these types of tools can be difficult to understand and use for a non-specific audience: “DeFi has many virtues, but usability is not one of them, and neither is this simplified”. This complexity can be an obstacle even when its premise is to offer “an easy, friendly and intuitive environment to communicate with the different DeFi protocols and be a custodian of your own capital”, he declares.
“The capital needed to invest in DeFi is drastically less than what is needed for the traditional financial world.”
– José Trajtenberg, CEO of Xcapit –
Because of this, the CEO of Xcapit remarks as an advantage that this ecosystem allows operating in centralized finance (CeFi), for which they have been associated with Binance «for almost two years, for liquidity reasons, market depth, infrastructure and security ”. In addition, the constant growth of Binance is a tailwind that they know how to take advantage of, he admits.
Who invests in cryptocurrencies in Argentina?
Asked about the characteristics Of the people who are most interested in the Xcapit offer, Trajtenberg details: «Our target client is the millennial that has surpluses and wants to channel them. These are people with empathy with the digital world and looking for options to diversify or, in some cases, as a first investment option. ”
Most of the Xcapit’s clients are from Argentina (“70%”); the second market is Mexico, followed by Spain and Brazil, although they also have users throughout Latin America. And how much does the average investor spend? “Between 1,500 and 2,000 dollars of funds managed per client”, although they usually start with lower amounts that later increase, says the director of the startup .
At the moment, Xcapit offers the possibility of linking the Binance account so that an artificial intelligence algorithm (a bot ) control investments according to the plan chosen by the client. There are four alternatives: Denali, Olympus, Andes and Himalaya, in order of increasing risk and investment.
However, for the third quarter of 2021 the platform will launch your own wallet , «the gateway to the DeFi market to manage these protocols from there». Likewise, they will add “in the short term a financial planner and manager and a credit card associated with the wallet.”
Regulation of DeFi: is it feasible?
If there is one factor that can propel the public interest in the crypto economy, it is state regulation, be it for better or for worse. Asked about this, Trajtenberg considered that “it is complex to regulate a decentralized P2P system from a State and from a limited geography. Starting from that limitation, what can happen is uncertain, at least, and is even incongruous by definition. Yes you can partially regulate the rise and fall of fiat money, but not the DeFi ».
“ Regulation is important at one point because it gives confidence to the mass public. However, there is another that can also be demotivated if the activity becomes impossible due to regulation. ”
– José Trajtenberg, CEO of Xcapit –
While admitted that it tends to “KYC processes with which governments seek to “prevent illicit activities that have cryptocurrencies as a safeguard of value,” the president of Xcapit affirmed that “the local regulatory logic does not fit with the global system. It is like trying to fit the square inside the ball: it does not fit ».
In short, it is first about understanding and then executing in search of progress , I consider. “Before, there should be a strong investment of time to understand what drives this technology and, from there, see if there is a possibility of regulating beyond the tax collection urge and in order to increase confidence and security”, concluded Trajtenberg.
