PORTLAND: Just a few months ago, Jack Mallers was pretty much indistinguishable from the horde of baseball cap and hoodie-wearing young men touting bitcoin. Now venture capitalists are clamouring to offer him money.

       The 27-year-old founder of a bitcoin money-transfer startup Zap Solutions Inc burst onto the mainstream in June when El Salvador’s president Nayib Bukele embraced bitcoin. Mallers, who was reduced to tears while on stage at a Miami conference when the announcement was made via video, had been working behind the scenes with the government to make it happen.

       Zap expects to finalise fresh funding soon, Mallers told Bloomberg News. While it’s not El Salvador’s exclusive bitcoin payments provider, Zap’s app, Strike, is the most popular mobile application in the Central American nation; it allows anyone to send or pay with bitcoin for free.

       Investors have taken notice. Mallers, who is based in Chicago, said in an interview that he is hoping to close a new funding round in the next few months. He wouldn’t disclose how much the company wants to raise, or comment on a valuation. In April 2020, Zap raised US$3.5mil (RM14.79mil) for a US$16.5mil (RM69.74mil) post-money valuation.

       “The company seems to get more and more valuable, with more and more inbound interest and demand,” Mallers said.

       The money will go toward an ambitious global rollout. Strike could be available in 50 to 100 countries by year-end, up from just El Salvador and the United States, Mallers said. The service is being tested in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia.

       By year-end, Zap hopes to have millions of customers, up from in the hundreds of thousands today, he said. The company likely faces hurdles such as varying regulations and licences. While it’s registered with FinCen, Zap doesn’t appear to have a licence in New York, for example.

       “We fully plan on complying and building healthy relationships,” Mallers said. Zap also plans to issue a Visa card later this year, which will let customers earn rewards in fiat or bitcoin. It is a partner of Visa, which has formed alliances with other cryptos. ― Bloomberg