Comments on: New Money For the Digital Age: It’s Called Kurrenci [Updates]

By: Bakari Chavanu

Bakari Chavanu — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 19:55:59 +0000

Fatan, not that I know of at this time.

By: Bakari Chavanu

Bakari Chavanu — Fri, 29 Jun 2012 19:54:16 +0000

Thank you for coming on here and responding to readers’ questions. I look forward to writing a follow-up article on this topic.

By: Fatan

Fatan — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 07:32:51 +0000

The best thing make this internet money different from many other internet money global acceptance. anything Else?

By: John@EconEngineer

John@EconEngineer — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:40:49 +0000

Oh, well, simple question, hard answer. If I knew exactly what would work I would do it myself obviously. That disclaimer being said; for the most part I like Aristotle’s requirements of actual money:

Durable (digits work as long as risk of loss has been removed, commodity currencies are good here, paper currencies not so good)
Portable (digits are super-portable, paper & commodity can be decent)
Divisible (again, digits rock, super divisible. Paper/Commodities are decent)
Must have a good market value (paper and digits are horrid here, commodity moneys are the best here)
Must have good weight/value ratio (digits=awesome, gold=good, copper=bad)

The thing with Kurrenci is that it is essentially a discounted dollar. Meaning, every currency is pegged to the dollar and worth at least as much. So in that regard it’s nice, but I don’t see it as a monetary instrument. As other commenters here have stated, it’s basically a new, cheaper, paypal. And shoot, Paypal could use the competition so I hope you do well!

I guess that’s not really helpful as you asked for “thoughts to improve”.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:27:50 +0000

We do not sell customer data! See privacy policy here: https://www.kurrenci.com/public/privacy-policy

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:24:30 +0000

We obviously work very hard to prevent that but even if someone get’s your password they can’t spend your Kurrenci – that’s why we require PIN which is fully encrypted.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:21:22 +0000

Did you know that 97% of US dollars aren’t “real” – cash is so outdated…

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:15:44 +0000

Hey Samantha,
Check it out and let us know your thoughts. We love to get feedback! #NeverStopImproving

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:15:02 +0000

Didn’t you hear – Facebook is the new Paypal :-) http://tcrn.ch/LRiBcT
We aren’t looking to compete with PayPal. Kurrenci is money – they are a wallet.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:12:33 +0000

Hey,
We are fully compliant with state and federal laws so would not be suitable for that purpose – you can try BitCoin ;-)
That being said, Kurrenci can be a great way for the underbanked population to safely store money without the fees/hassle associated with traditional banks.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:09:06 +0000

John,
Thanks for your feedback! Please reach out to us – would love to hear your thoughts and how to improve it.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:06:16 +0000

Hey Luis,
Kurrenci works differently from other currencies which fluctuate based on market pricing. Kurrenci is pegged to the dollar when it’s bought but when used will be worth more. Each shop gets to set their own exchange rate (in real time) but can never be less than a dollar. So in essence it can only fluctuate in one direction – up.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 04:02:16 +0000

Chris,
You are correct – Kurrenci eliminates processing fees, but the primary value to the store is customer acquisition and retention.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 03:59:45 +0000

Joel,
Thanks for the questions! First (as others pointed out) BitCoin hasn’t flopped – it has found its niche in people wanting to do irreversible, anonymous transactions. We are not like BitCoin, nor are we looking to compete with PayPal.
The $10 is a customer acquisition cost that the merchant is giving to the consumer. If you think about how small to mid-sized ecommerce sites acquire customers, you will realize that they pay much more in affiliate/marketplace fees. With they can give that margin to the consumer in the form of a favorable exchange rate. Keep in mind, shops have full control of the rate at their site and are not forced to offer an added value all the time.
We have approximately 30 shops on board for the beta launch and are currently integrating them (you will be able to shop with Kurrenci withing 2 weeks). We aren’t going after the “big guys” but rather great sites that have the product consumers want at a great value. Amazon may control 50% of ecommerce sales but there are myriad other sites out there. We now offer them a level playing field.

By: Kurrenci

Kurrenci — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 03:43:55 +0000

Hey Janet and John,
We are not the first to recognize that the internet should have it’s own currency, but we aim to do it better and learn from the mistakes of those who preceded us.
We have partnered with PreCash one of the largest money services businesses in the US. They (and us by extension) are licensed and regulated as a “money transmitter” and customer funds are being held in an FDIC insured account.
We have also instituted advanced systems to detect potential fraud and/or money laundering.
The safety of your money is our first priority!