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Litecoin's Lee: Bank Deal Might Lead to New Crypto Services

Charlie Lee took to reddit Tuesday to clarify his and the Litecoin Foundation's roles in the new acquisition of nearly 10 percent of a German bank. 

By Nikhilesh De
AccessTimeIconJul 17, 2018 at 8:00 p.m. UTC
Updated Sep 13, 2021 at 8:11 a.m. UTC
Litecoin and USD

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Litecoin creator Charlie Lee could be made a board member at the German bank the Litecoin Foundation – the group in which he serves as managing director – recently obtained a stake in.

The deal for a 9.9 percent stake in WEG Bank AG resulted through a partnership with the crypto startup TokenPay, as previously reported. And while the response on social media seems to have been mostly positive, Lee nonetheless took to Reddit on Tuesday to offer "clarifications" on the nature of the deal, the foundation's involvement and what benefits the arrangement could bring.

According to Lee, that best-case scenario would see WEG Bank attempt to launch crypto products and services – but that's not a done deal by any means, the litecoin creator conceded.

He wrote

:

"Best case is that with this bank, we are able to create and deliver crypto solutions like debit cards, merchant processing, and other innovative solutions. However, even with a stake and influence at the bank, it's not guaranteed that this will succeed."

Lee also clarified that the deal didn't see the foundation spend any money, saying that the stake came "in exchange for technical work and marketing support for TokenPay, eFin decentralized exchange, and integration with the bank."

"To be clear, LF did not pay any money for this stake in the bank. The plan is also for me to get a board seat at the bank," he explained.

Lee noted that there are still some obstacles to overcome in order to launch a crypto debit card, writing: "People have brought up valid concerns that we still need to work with and be approved by players in the current financial systems like Visa and SWIFT."

That being said, owning a stake in a licensed bank gives the Litecoin Foundation "a much higher chance of succeeding."

Litecoin image via Shutterstock

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