The first Georgian crypto payment company CityPay.io joins the global market.

The first Georgian crypto payment company CityPay.io joins the global market.

Cryptocurrencies and blockchain have been the subject of discussion in the Georgian market for a long time, and are enjoying considerable popularity. Over time, crypto-currency owners have begun to demand a wider use for their financial assets. In addition, the increase in the number of digital currency owners created the need for businesses to sell goods in exchange for cryptocurrencies.

Beka Kemertelidze and Eralf Hatipoglu, the founders of CityPay.io, saw this potential three years ago, and created the first unique platform in the region for receiving crypto payments for businesses. The company has been actively operating in the Georgian market since 2021, and cooperates with several leading companies in various fields.

Through CityPay.io, we can now buy various products and services with Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. Its goal is to make the local or international payment process simple, fast, and secure for businesses and their customers. One of the advantages of the platform is that it is possible to pay with any cryptocurrency or with any crypto-electronic wallet. In addition, several exchange platforms are integrated into its system, which allows conversion of the amount paid when purchasing a product, at the best rate.

Recently, CityPay.io successfully closed a Seed Investment round, during which several negotiations occurred.

"We are happy to have received investment from companies we value, so that each contribution is unique and gives a greater benefit than financial support. Regional cooperation with them has opened up doors and opportunities for us. We cannot go into the details yet, but we will inform our supporters and customers about it soon", - Eralf Hatipoglu, co-founder and CEO of the company, promises in an interview with Entrepreneur.

Partnerships with the largest crypto companies

CityPay.io recently announced a partnership with the world's leading cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance, which will allow Binance users to make payments through Binance Pay and CityPay.io at up to 1,000 locations.

CityPay.io has been successfully serving businesses with crypto payments for over two years, and has been on an exciting development path. Entrepreneur wants to tell you how the team of professionals at CityPay.io managed to turn cryptocurrency transactions into a part of everyday life.

At the beginning of 2023, CityPay.io signed a partnership agreement with the world's leading, largest crypto companies - Binance, Gate.io, and Tether. The mentioned cooperation saw a significant response from the global market, with the Georgian startup subsequently appearing in the works of more than 500 international media outlets, and the large-scale media outreach really put Georgia on the global crypto map.

Partnerships with these prominent companies gave the Georgian company more extensive exposure, more experience working in global markets, a more comprehensive range of potential customers, and the opportunity to make a giant leap forward in development in a very short time. At this stage, the business is focused on maintaining the quality of its service and the steady development process of the product in parallel with rapid growth.

"It's always nice to see how a small startup moves forward, and how it gets support from the world's leading companies. Our team managed to meet the international standards of service, and achieved results that make positive changes in people's daily lives", - says Beka Kemertelidze, CityPay.io co-founder.

How do the leading companies of the crypto world assess cooperation with CityPay.io?

"At Binance, we believe in the freedom of money. Our collaboration with CityPay.io not only increased the awareness of the crypto industry in the region, but also offered users more security and a more efficient payment system. We are excited to work with CityPay.io. Together, we will continue to stimulate the adoption of cryptocurrency around the world", - notes Yuri Galichenko, Business Development Manager of Pay and Cards at Binance.

"Gate.io is revolutionizing the cryptocurrency space by using the Gate Pay platform, enabling their more than 13 million users to fully embrace the Web 3.0 lifestyle and freely use cryptocurrency for everyday purchases.

"We are excited to cooperate with CityPay.io, the newest crypto payment startup, one which provides seamless crypto payment services for hundreds of everyday scenarios, including hotel reservations, shopping at supermarkets, paying in shopping malls, and much more. This strategic partnership will significantly benefit the Georgian market's local population and commercial facilities. We believe that CityPay.io will play a vital role in supporting the expansion and growth of Gate Pay in the European market", - said Fang Zhou, Head of Crypto Payment Services of Gate.io.

Recently, Tether and Bitfinex joined the international partners of the company, thanks to which payment became possible with the first stable cryptocurrency USDt. They tell us that they have some interesting and ambitious joint plans ahead.

"We are delighted to cooperate with CityPay.io, an important step forward in our mission to provide everyone with fast, secure, and cost-effective use of USDt payments. As a company whose mission is to provide financial freedom to people worldwide, cooperation with such a startup as CityPay.io is critical to achieving our goals. This collaboration marks an important milestone in our journey, and we are excited to explore new ways to integrate USDt payments into people's daily lives in the coming months ", - says Paolo Ardoino, CTO of Tether & Bitfinex.

Who creates success in CityPay.io?

Eralf Hatipoglu - Co-founder of CityPay.io

Eralf Hatipoglu is one of the founders of CityPay.io, with ten years of experience in marketing and sales. In 2016, he founded one of the first mining centers in Georgia. Today, Eralf is the founder and CEO of CityPay.io, and is actively involved in communication with potential and existing international partners and clients.

According to Eralf, ever since its creation, the startup has actively sought to cooperate with cryptocurrency owners, even when the currency was used as a risky financial investment . Later, the CityPay.io founders faced the need for a real-life use of the financial asset and created a platform through which businesses can receive payments, and cryptocurrency holders can make payments.

"We had to overcome many obstacles from the foundation to date. The product has also been through a lot of development to meet the real needs of business operations. We actively listened to crypto-payers' feedback and created the first and most successful system in the region, which received great support from the target audience. We still aim to continue developing the product to make the platform even more user-friendly", - Hatipoglu notes.

CityPay.io took its first steps as a startup in the local market, and today it is a full-fledged company that is also actively operating internationally. Global partners have increased awareness of the company, its credibility, and support from different countries, especially in the last quarter.

CityPay.io cooperates with leading companies in the sector, such as Wendy's Georgia, 8000 Vintages, hotels under the management of Silk Hospitality, Radisson Collection Tsinandali Estate, Radisson Blu Iveria Hotel, supermarket chain – Fresco, Episode Hotels, and others.

According to Eralf, CityPay.io's most significant achievement has been turning cryptocurrency into a daily asset. Today, almost all kinds of products and services can be purchased through CityPay.io's online payment platform or on-site crypto POS terminals. The company's co-founder says a significant achievement is the team and partners who united around one idea with such motivation and created positive changes in people's lives.

"We had many obstacles in the way of our startup's existence, but we refused to lose faith, motivation, and the desire to seek new opportunities, something I think the co-founders successfully dealt with – seeing us turning all obstacles into opportunities. After two years, together, with a team of 26 people, about 1000 partner businesses, and dozens of international supporters, we are creating real value in the daily lives of both people and businesses", - Hatipoglu explains.

Keti Karseladze - Chief Marketing Officer

Keti Karseladze works on the local and international marketing strategies of CityPay.io, having many years of experience in this field. Her endless interest in the possibilities of the digital world and the decentralized financial market led to her joining the CityPay.io team right at the get-go.

Marketing activities and proper communication strategies with the public are essential factors for a startup's success. According to Keti, the biggest challenge with CityPay.io was to increase the awareness and credibility of the brand and the crypto world among the general public. In parallel, one of the main objectives of CityPay.io was to create credibility for cryptocurrency as a means of payment, which they successfully accomplished with more significant support from companies and partners in the Georgian and foreign markets.

"When we introduced the product, we invested resources in raising awareness about crypto and establishing credibility in our company. I think the results of these efforts, and progress on a global scale, is clear. In these two years, the monthly number of businesses wishing to integrate crypto payments into their payment systems has increased by an average of 10 times, while the number of crypto owners has almost doubled. There is also a sharp increase in demand for crypto payments, which we are successfully introducing into daily lifestyles", - Karseladze notes.

Thanks to its new partners, CityPay.io's reputation has rocketed. In the last quarter, more than 500 local and international media channels showed interest and covered the company's news. Among them were global news channels U Today, newsBTC, Cointelegraph, Yahoo! Finance, Marketwatch, KTLA (Los Angeles, USA), PR Newswire, Benzinga (USA, Canada), and Coinscreed. In addition, Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Binance's CEO, actively supported the company on his Twitter account, which drew worldwide interest to the company.

CityPay.io actively participates in various educational projects, sharing experiences and running frequent student meetings. In addition, together with partners, the company plans to create an author's educational space, which will increase awareness about crypto and blockchain so that what was perceived as a topic of the future becomes more tangible for the public. The company has many more far-reaching plans besides!

"Our plan for the future includes several areas, including creating a strong community of crypto owners and establishing active communication with them. The second is brand positioning and development in the regional market. We have started work in both directions and will soon present even more ambitious projects", - Karseladze says.

Tamta Davitashvili - Product Owner

Tamta Davitashvili joined the CityPay.io team as a Product Owner when few people knew about cryptocurrencies in Georgia or around the world. At the time, she had a basic knowledge of the crypto world. Still, considering she had experience working on other projects with the founders of CityPay.io, she tackled the entirely new field with great enthusiasm and curiosity.

"CityPay.io was created with the collaboration of just a few friends. From the beginning, we brought together people who believed in the idea and the future of crypto payments and modern technologies. On the way, other people joined with the same beliefs and interests in the crypto world. When I joined the team, I knew for sure that working on a startup with these people would be a great adventure", - Davitashvili notes.

CityPay.io is the region's first and currently only crypto payment provider. The company allows businesses to receive crypto payments from their customers and convert them into traditional currency (GEL).

In a conversation with Entrepreneur, Davitashvili notes that the company has added stable cryptocurrency USDt, which both merchants and crypto-payers were eagerly waiting for. In addition, CityPay.io serves both businesses and individual users, who can easily purchase a desired cryptocurrency using a card.

What does being a Product Owner at CityPay.io mean, and what role does it play in business development? As a result of close communication with customers, Tamta, as a Product Owner, strives to constantly improve the company's products and services and, accordingly, significantly increase customer satisfaction. Continually developing the product range or the services provided directly affects the business's profitability. As a result, the company can respond to the market's needs promptly and retain leadership in promoting crypto payments in the region.

"In the startup environment, you have to constantly adapt to different roles that require great responsibility and, simultaneously, are extremely interesting. I am glad that I have significantly contributed to forming and developing this team - in both recruiting and management. The achievement of this team is the creation of the product and technology, which, today, is used not only in Georgia but also in many countries outside of its borders. The CityPay.io team united around one idea and ideology, successfully promoting crypto payments. I think it is thanks to the CityPay.io team that today, many businesses have already adapted to crypto-payments", - Davitashvili says.

Mariam Khizanishvili - head of the partner relations direction

Since being on the market, CityPay.io has paid great attention to its relationship with partners. Every company decision is based on feedback from partner businesses and customers, so this approach provides an endless opportunity for development. Another member of CityPay.io team, Mariam Khizanishvili, leading the partner relations, has direct communication with up to 1,000 partner businesses and chooses to employ an individual approach to each of them.

"CityPay.io successfully serves many enterprises in the local and international markets. An individual approach to each of our partners is critical, and we try to follow this strategy on every scale. We plan individual campaigns with each of our partner companies, and consider their needs in any activity we do with them. I believe the individual approach and prompt response to any of their needs is the main attribute that makes us a reliable business partner", - Khizanishvili explains.

Future plans of the company.

Currently, CityPay.io has around 1,000 partner companies focused on creating a comfortable environment for hundreds of thousands of crypto users. The team's goal is to simplify and introduce crypto services as far as possible in the CIS region, where users will have the opportunity to use the desired products and services without converting to fiat.

CityPay.io continues to grow with the aim of reaching the global market. This year, they are planning more projects that will make the crypto-payments ecosystem a part of daily life in the CIS region - and they are going to expand the scope of crypto-payments by combining various areas with partner businesses.