Crypto.com Reduces VISA Debit Requirements After User Outrage

Crypto.com Listens to its Users

The first topic to be covered in the AMA was the cost reduction for the VISA debit cards. The various tiers for the VISA debit cards are now cheaper than they were before the MCO/CRO swap took place. The community had two points of contention regarding the swap. The ratio of the swap between CRO and MCO, and the increase in cost for the VISA debit cards. One of the first user generated questions that Kris Marzsalek answered was the following.

“How do you justify raising the cost of acquisition for the VISA debit cards”.

The response given by Kris was indicative of the overall intent of Crypto.com to listen to user feedback. 

“We don’t justify, we fix” – Kris Marszalek

This response given by the CEO of Crypto.com demonstrates that they are willing and able to quickly respond to user dissatisfaction. Not on every concern, but on the concerns that they are feasibly able to do something about. Crypto.com was ready to acknowledge that a miscalculation, or mistake had been made in setting the price of the VISA debit tiers. The fact that Crypto.com responded 24 hours after user outrage is indicative of the level of dedication they have towards their users. This response time echoes how quickly they responded to the Wirecard scandal.

Here’s a look at how the updated Visa Card debit tiers cost as of Aug. 4, 2020:

Crypto.com Will Not Give Better MCO/CRO Swap Price

The other concern that Kris addressed during the AMA, is the MCO/CRO swap price. It is no small task to completely absorb the market cap of one token, even if it is a smaller market cap token. Users insisted that a more fair ratio of compensation is closer to 1:100, rather than the 1:33 that was given. Kris drew attention to the fact that Crypto.com is only 4 years old, and simply cannot justify a $200 million dollar expense this early in their existence. Many users are outraged at the swap price, and the way it was conducted. Several users are putting forth compelling evidence that the price of MCO and CRO was manipulated ahead of time. A low MCO price, and a high CRO price makes the MCO swap cheaper for Crypto.com to conduct.

All things aside, the reasoning behind retiring the MCO token makes a lot of sense. 

Crypto.com Conforms to Regulators

One of the main barriers to the scaling of the Crypto.com ecosystem, was the existence of the MCO token. Regulators found it problematic for Crypto.com to use an ICO token to facilitate core functionality within the ecosystem. Because MCO had been launched via an ICO, (an unregulated crowd sale), this creates problems with getting Crypto.com into regulated financial ecosystems. This additional piece of context helps users who are upset about the MCO retirement understand the decision made by Crypto.com

Now that the MCO token is gone, and its entire functionality has been wrapped into CRO, Crypto.com is free to scale. Crypto.com is no longer burdened or restricted from growing their ecosystem as they see fit. From a business perspective, this is a very intelligent move on their part. Rather than the retirement of MCO being a point of contention for users, this should be seen as a victory.

A Single Token Will Streamline Crypto.com

Crypto.com has a mission statement to fuel the adoption of cryptocurrency worldwide. Teaching cryptocurrency to newcomers is already a massively difficult thing to do. It is even more difficult when your platform is split between two different tokens. A single token Crypto.com is a better Crypto.com. This simplification will only accelerate the rate at which new users come to understand the benefit of doing business with Crypto.com.

Not only is the ecosystem much more simple, but for the time being, it is also cheaper. Every card tier has become marginally less expensive than before the MCO swap. This puts more functionality closer to the reach of every user of Crypto.com.

Crypto.com User Dissent

A certain portion of the Crypto.com user base will leave the platform for various reasons. One of the more balanced sentiments on forums such as reddit is that the MCO swap was a good idea, but poorly executed. Other users are drawing attention to the fact that only 20% of the CRO is in existence, and the remaining 80% is in the hands of Crypto.com. This creates long term price uncertainty that users were hedging by picking by holding MCO. The total supply of MCO was much smaller than CRO, and many users saw this scarcity as one of the main drivers of their investment. Now their token has been swapped with a less scarce alternative, users are planning to leave Crypto.com altogether.

The Future of Crypto.com and CRO

My prediction will be that CRO will continue to see marginal gains in the months to come. The bull market is still taking off, and the Crypto.com syndicate events are driving significant value to the users. After a couple of months go by, and Crypto.com continues to deliver on their promises, I imagine that users will stay with the investment for one simple reason. Crypto.com is solving real problems in the crypto world. This solving of problems is what drives value at the end of the day. Solving these problems might just be enough to make the user outrage completely disappear.