Tokeo x Mastercard powered by Mercuryo: Cardano's gateway to the $550 billion credit card industry

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

Zushan Hashmi

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

Entity (Incorporated)

[GENERAL] Requested funds in ada

370000

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

5

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language

No

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

Tokeo aims to disrupt this trend by partnering with Mastercard, powered by Mercuryo to offer fully white-labeled, branded crypto debit cards that enable Cardano users to access physical cards.

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

Yes

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

We are relying on card issuers in order to launch a virtual debit card on Cardano (Mastercard & Mercuryo). They are already signed and play a vital role for bringing debit cards into Cardano’s ecosystem.

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

No

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

This project offers seamless integration of a natively embedded debit card within Tokeo, fully branded under Tokeo.

The card operations, APIs, and smart contracts will be developed by Mercuryo and made available for other DEXs or wallets.

Any project wishing to launch its own branded solution would need to approach Mercuryo for a tailored onboarding process.

[METADATA] Horizons

Payments

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

How do you perceive the problem you are solving?

Today's self-custody wallets lack the necessary features to attract users beyond the Web3 space. For those who are not focused on the underlying technology, self-custody wallets fall significantly behind traditional neobanks and super apps.

Moreover, even for dedicated Web3 enthusiasts, off-ramping options remain limited. It's either costly, with fees exceeding 4%, or overly complex, requiring users to navigate through centralized exchanges.

What are your reasons for approaching it in the way that you have?

Debit cards provide the most straightforward connection to millions of merchants worldwide. By facilitating debit card issuance on Cardano, we can leverage established payment networks while offering a user experience that competes with even the most established neobanks. Tokeo will enjoy complete flexibility in its launch, powered by Mastercard through Mercuryo, enabling the ability to implement custom fee structures and tailor the experience via APIs.

In many cases, off-ramping options are relatively limited. Funds generated from staking rewards, for instance, can be effectively utilized for everyday activities through debit cards. Additionally, Mercuryo has successfully integrated card services with Apple Pay. The Tokeo debit card will allow users to create a card in seconds, top it up with ADA, add it to Apple Pay, and start spending immediately!

Who will your project engage?

Our project will engage the whole Cardano community counting existing Tokeo users and potential new users. 

We will launch a promotion campaign together with Mastercard / Mercuryo to also get more media exposure for the greater Cardano ecosytem. Essentially all our users or cardano community members in EU and UK will be invited to create their virtual TOKEO debit card.

How will you demonstrate or prove your impact?

The impact can be measured by the number of debit cards issued and the user inflow for Tokeo.

We firmly believe that our debit card offering will set us apart from many other self-custody wallets. This feature will significantly enhance our value proposition and competitiveness.

We are confident that the card will serve as a powerful tool to attract users from other chains and even from the Web2 space.

Additionally, we anticipate an increase in overall activity within the Tokeo wallet, as data indicates that once cards are integrated into a mobile banking experience, app engagement rates can triple, making the app an integral part of users' daily lives.

We look forward to collaborating with Mercuryo on reporting the number of cards issued and tracking spending volume.

We measure impact directly through analytics dashboards. We get access to a client dashboard showing analytics for the whole card program (issuance, volumes, churn etc).

Moreover, our outputs and opportunities will be shared mostly through social media:

• Announcements for card availability.
• Opportunity for large social exposure for Cardano (recently Solana launched cards they got +200k likes on one post mentioning the card). 
• We measure impact directly through analytics dashboards.
• We get access to a client dashboard showing analytics for the whole card program (issuance, volumes, churn etc).
• The top metrics we are focusing on are:
• 1. Cards created and,
• 2. Payment volume.

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

The Cardano ecosystem stands to gain significantly from our project. With the introduction of our offerings, Cardano will see increased utility, particularly for new users, leading to improved user experiences, higher retention rates, and accelerated user growth.

Mercuryo already has over 7 million KYC'd users who can seamlessly access Cardano and its associated products without undergoing additional KYC requirements. Simultaneously, these KYC'd users can create a Tokeo card with just one click.

Here’s a brief overview of how Cardano will benefit:

1. Enhanced Utility: Cardano users will enjoy improved functionality, enabling them to spend their earnings seamlessly.
2. Mastercard Partnership: Through Mercuryo, we will leverage a partnership with Mastercard, providing marketing exposure directly from Mastercard itself.
3. Long-term Strategic Partnership: We will collaborate with Mercuryo to further develop the card product, expanding into physical cards, premium tier models, and exclusive perks. The Cardano community will also have the opportunity to vote on new features for the card.
4. Strengthened Offering: Our initiative will enhance the overall Cardano offering, attracting users from other chains.

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

Our existing capabilities in brief:

Tokeo: 

• Fully functional Cardano wallet with cross-chain capabilities, including Bitcoin integration and 4000+ users.

• 5 Full-time developers with additional resources being onboarded in the near term.

• Strong team of founders with over 80 years in combined experience, alongside 9 other team members across Tech, Marketing and Operations.

Mercuryo :

• Over 200 Clients trust Mercuryo (trustwallet, metamask, OKX, Bybit, Ledger just to name a few)

• Over 7m KYC’d users and been on the forefront of innovation in this space and have consistently developed new products to solve challenges of our clients. Be it for nft, gaming or defi clients. 

• Fintech in Series A+, billions of USD in processed payments, profitable with higher 8 figures in annual recurring revenue. 

• +250 dedicated Mercuryans working across the world with presence and offices in US, EU and ASIA. Coming from the best web 3 projects as well as directors from fintech and payment leaders Visa, Klarna, Revolut to have the best capabilities for unifying tradtional fintech with web3 / blockchain.

More information regarding the Mercuryo and Mastercard partnership can be found here: https://cointelegraph.com/news/mastercard-non-custodial-crypto-spending-card

[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

A: Milestone outputs

• Mastercard program approved by MasterCard and Mercuryo, design and tech approval (– Card Program Approval by MC)

B: Acceptance criteria

• Tokeo Card Design approved by Mercuryo, submitted for creation by Mastercard (takes 3-4 weeks) 
• Integration scope defined and Mastercard x Mercuryo x Tokeo Agreement signed. 

C: Evidence of milestone completion

• Signed agreement/launch announcement Tokeo and Mercuryo

A: Milestone outputs

Launch of Debit Card Program with Tokeo x Mastercard x Mercuryo enabling direct card issuance in Tokeo app with the ability to top up and spend ADA.

B: Acceptance criteria

• API development and integration together with Mercuryo.
• Testing and soft launch of cards.
• Apple Pay / Google Pay Connectivity.
• Go live of cards – available for all retail users based out of EU and UK. 

C: Evidence of milestone completion

• First issuance of a virtual debit card + top up with ADA. Can be verified by any passport holder or resident card holder in the EU / UK. 

A: Milestone outputs

Co Marketing and Branding Campaign with Mercuryo and Mastercard.

B: Acceptance criteria

• Launch announcements on socials. 
• Growth campaign launched to acquire users/card holders. 

C: Evidence of milestone completion

• Announcements on socials, demo videos and activation campaign to gain users / boost card issuance. 

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Zushan Hashmi - Marketing lead, responsible for marketing development, overarching strategy development and deliverables.

Stephen Geederson - Growth Lead, responsible for business growth, client and partnership acquisition, and business strategy.

Simon Canil - Development Lead, responsible for Dev team, overarching Tokeo product development, and dev strategy.

Pascal Kurzawa - Senior BD, responsible for this proposal, managing relationships with Cardano foundation and Cardano dApps.

Peter Kelen - Commercial Director and Ex-VISA, responsible for overlooking revenue growth, establishing targets, ensuring project execution and overlooking client acquisition on Cardano.

Vasil Viktorov - Product Lead (Debit Card), responsible for Mercuryos card program, establishing roadmap and liaising with card providers, negotiating contracts and accepting customer feedback/product recommendations.

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Milestone 1:

120.000 ADA

Milestone 2:

200.000 ADA

Milestone 3:

50.000 ADA

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

Cost and potential value add for cardano dapps have been calculated here