Why Nash exchange hasn't become the main driver for Nash the Platform

Watercooler
#1

At the close of this fortnight’s episode of the Beyond the Chain podcast Fabio mentions that initially Nash imagined the exchange would be the main driver for user adoption and platform growth, specifically mentioning users running 3 monitors used for day trading. We’re now ~1 year since the launch of the exchange and the consensus from the team seems to be that the most popular component of the platform is the mobile app where users have a high demand for FIAT ramps (Nash Cash) and the ability to make payments (Nash Pay). As neither of these products are live it’s too early to comment on their effectiveness in growing the platform so I’ll leave that for another time, however the potential for the network effects of these two cannot be underestimated.

I’m unsure as to why the exchange itself isn’t seen to be the main driver for growth, comparing to existing successful exchanges might give us some insight into why Nash exchange is yet to become the main driver for platform growth;

Binance : low KYC requirements, liberal number of new token listings, ability to fake trading volume and manipulate price discovery, extensive tether markets, strong focus on China, low barrier to entry (no hassle sending funds from personal account to trading contract)

BitMex : low KYC requirements, first mover advantage for leveraged option trading in the bitcoin space

FTX : low KYC requirements, large variety of options, futures and indexes, generous leverage

Coinbase first mover advantage for FIAT to crypto in the US, simple UI, GDAX acquisition

UniSwap : no KYC requirements, no listing requirements, interoperability with most popular ETH wallets, liquidity mining possibilities

Nash : high KYC requirements, limited trading pairs / high listing requirements, no leverage offered, lack of options futures and indexes, all volume must be genuine on-chain trades, limited market penetration (Canada, New-Zealand, China, Japan, Korea etc…)

As it stands Nash can only really compete with Coinbase once Nash Cash is live (even then Coinbase offers a Visa debit card which isn’t on the roadmap for Nash yet), Nash’s non-custodial nature and off-chain L2 matching engine is the USP/advantage Nash has over the competition however Nash doesn’t yet address the USP’s of competing successful platforms mentioned above.

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Nash’s original vision for crypto-crypto trading, crypto-securities trading, prime brokerage tools and inter-exchange is still the correct vision for future growth in my opinion however it looks to me like;

  • a broader listing of new and established crypto assets
  • options & futures trading
  • leverage
  • liquidity mining
  • indexes
  • automated trading integrations (Gunbot etc.)

are prerequisites for Nash Exchange to be successful (most of these are either in development already or under consideration). During the podcast Jeff mentions “It’s better to have 1000 users that love your product than 1 million who like it”, for now the first 1000 users that love Nash’s product might be the mobile users waiting on Nash Cash/Pay. However once the more advanced exchange features are live there’s more than 1000 users waiting to love that part of the platform.

Nash Exchange/Cash/Pay ► Trade, Pay, Invest

Ultimately Nash Cash, Pay, Exchange and the Community all feed into each other and help to spin the flywheel. It’s up to us the community to make use of the platform, provide feedback and help onboard new members. I look forward to paying, trading, mining liquidity, saving and investing with everyone here, cant wait to see whats in store for the next instalment of Beyond The Chain.

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#2

I see this things to be so unnecessary, here in USA, I never use debit to pay for things. Also a crypto debit will be so visible to everyone so I would be afraid for my safety if I would flash with it in the store. ( the same with the ledger, let people see that you have something like this and they might think that you have millions)

Nash is different, and exposing myself to bright minds from YouTube (billionaires) I see that soon (2-7 years) Nash is going to be in Billions territory. Nash is behaving like the brightest minds in modern history do. I believe that even my imagination is limited, in comparison with what is possible to achieve with a team like Nash.

I am definitely inn. I believe that Nash is the future, and I am super proud to be here from the beginning :partying_face:

2 Likes
#3

This:

and definitely this:

1 Like
#4

I think you slightly misunderstood what he is saying.

The exchange is not going to be abandoned and the long term goals of the exchange are not necessarily thrown out of the window.

It is just that Nash Cash and Nash Pay are going to be scaled first.

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#5

I agree with you.

The only feature Nash Exchange has over other exchanges right now is its non-custodial aspect. While I’m sure it will in the end be a decisive factor, I think we can safely say now that it is not a sufficient incentive to have users switch from the main exchange and give up on features they have there. Your summary on the matter is compelling.

With the release of Nash Cash and Nash Pay, everything will start falling into place, but I do believe we’ll need some kind of spark for users to take notice of Nash and start using it.

Maybe Nash Cash will be that spark - and I’m sure for Nash community it will be - but if you’re all set up with KYC and ramps on another exchange, will you really go the distance and sign up on Nash? We’ll see. One thing is sure though: not having on ramps discarded as a credible candidate. So we’re going the right direction.

How about Nash Pay? Can it be the spark? Maybe.
From the user’s perspective, the only existing solution that could match it is debit cards. In that regard, I believe Coinbase is no match: they do offer a debit card, but it requires you to hold fiat in your account (I think they offer the possibility to liquidate crypto for you to get fiat and make the purchase, but they take a 2.49% fee + slippage). But then there are other debit card services like Crypto[.]com and Swipe. They even offer cashback on purchases, that’s hard to match. Still, it does not give you the comfort of having a one-stop-shop solution. In that regard, I believe that adding additional services (Nash Savings is a great example) will eventually tilt the balance in Nash’s favor.

I can’t wait to see how everything unfolds.

8 Likes
#7

The community is constantly alleviating the exchange portion of the platform, unfortunate…

#8

This is about existing users, but this is not the same for new users ( a much bigger portion of the market, that is not yet in crypto )

Crypto space is wild at the moment, many investors are following the wisdom of YouTube stars.

With current rate of development, in 2 years Nash will catch up in technology used by big boys, and on top of that with the twist of Non-Custody. ( just a estimation from Fabio, I forgot in what post )

When Nash will be simply the Best, even existing users will KYC again, just because Nash is the best option, no compromises. ( I do understand that competition will not wait for Nash to take over, and still I know that Nash can do it )
If it’s a matter of time, then I will gladly run along with Nash, as long as it’s needed. :wink:

To estimate that 95+ % of people are not yet exposed to crypto, then Nash still has time to capture the market :handshake:

#9

Could Swipe be a future (not far off) competitor to Nash Pay? They are getting full support from Binance, as they’re now owned by Binance. They are launching debit cards (and mobile app, you don’t necessarily need to use the card) with up to 5% cash back paid out in Bitcoin (1% cash back if you don’t stake, but up to 5% depending on how much you stake), and they’re also providing perks (refunds on Netflix, amazon/apple music, etc etc). You can pay with about 30 different cryptos anywhere a Visa card is accepted and the seller receives cash. Launching in Europe, U.S. and elsewhere. One thing they don’t have that Nash will is: they’re custodial. However, I believe your funds are stored in Coinbase Wallet and are legally insured up to a certain amount.

I’m not trying to shill Swipe (full disclosure I own a bit, in the interest of diversification. I own WAY more NEX and am infinitely more emotionally invested in this product and community), I’m just trying to stay appraised of competition and understand how Nash will fit in. I think that Swipe will not be able to compete with all that Nash has to offer, and the quality of Nash products. From using the Swipe Wallet, I can tell that they are absolutely RUSHING to market with a product that has not been sufficiently tested and is lacking support. How important will first-mover advantage be? Will the backing and support from Binance make market penetration an even more uphill battle? Competition will be fierce, but I can tell you one thing for sure: we have way better product and community. In that regard, there is no competition!

Sorry for the rant. I’m just ‘talking out loud’ here. I’ve been thinking about the above questions to myself a lot.

1 Like
#10

Why use Swipe though, when you can use a bank for that, can’t you? Surely there’s the cashback as we both mentioned, but those advantages will fade away sooner than later, seeing how unsustainable they are: right now Swipe is having a costly fight with CDC to capture as much market share as possible, but in the end what value do they bring to the table?

#11

I’d use a crypto debit card with 2% bitcoin back all day over my credit card with 1% cash back.

You think this perk is unsustainable? Hm, I did not think where the capital for the cash back comes from. Credit card companies can do it sustainably so I assumed Swipe/Binance could as well.

For me the value it brings to the table, is being able to move fully into cryptocurrency. Right now I can’t feasibly spend my crypto most places, so I need to be in fiat.

Cash back or not, I would use Nash Pay over a Swipe debit card, because I believe in the product and vision much more. Plus with zero fee fiat on-ramp… I’m sold. But will others?

#12

I’m not sure of swipe in specific, but I believe some of the crypto card companies give you less than market value for your crypto. This can be a few percentage. Kinda like a hidden fee.

Also for credit card payments merchants are paying quite a big fee. For online payments I sometimes see those fees (for a part) being passed to the customer. Maybe in some countries they also pass part of the fees in physical stores to customers. In my country (NL), many physical stores like grocery stores simply decided not to accept credit cards at all.

So depending on your region, you as a customer might not notice any of the credit card fees charged to merchants. And crypto->fiat rates might be well below market rates on some of the crypto cards. I believe Nash offers merchants zero fees and customers just pay the taker fees of the exchange (0.25%).

#13

Yeah why is that so? Because the Nash Team care about law and they always try to make Nash to an serious and trustworthy place where you can trade and where you don’t have to worry that this exchange will shutdown in you location because this exchange doesn’t fit the law in your location. The crypto market is very little compare to other market. (What it mean the lawmakers take that market not really serious) now it is important to speak with the lawmakers and make laws together. When the crypto market grows and the lawmaker see that market will challenge the current system then they will make regulations without asking the crypto community.(The big purge will begin) This laws will be very painful. Why most of the big companies have most of the time a better position then other companies? They have made the laws together with the politicians called lobbying. GOV are always thinking they have to save the ppl for damage. When you build a platform what can do this it will looking great for the GOV. They current crypto market and the possibility that ppl get hurt are very high. It is not very user friendly and you need learn a lot to do everything right. It looks not good for the GOV.

I personal don’t like that the GOV think like this because for me is self ownership the most important thing. The crypto market is a very liberal place where everyone can trade without borders and when someone will hurt it is most of the time their own fault. They should learn from this an does it better the next time that means it to be grow up. The big but is for the mass adaptation we
have to talke with the lawmakers because they have the power and at the end it should be a win win situation.

That means more new ppl in the future will use Nash. That is also a reason why so many new ppl use Coinbase that is their start in the Crypto World. (Coinbase also talk with the lawmakers)

Short the KFC or listing not every token has a good reason what will pay out in the long run.

Many ppl have to understand this strategy what the Nash team is doing is better safe then sorry a very rational behavior when you don’t know what the future will bring.

1 Like
#14

Without hosting strong trading competitions and other such incentives, this seems like an extremely injudicious hypothesis; though it’s easy to say that with the benefit of hindsight. Traders care about profits, they’re in crypto for profits, and most will shirk security (taking on that extra risk), if it means maximizing potential profits. Decentralized finance and banking the unbanked doesn’t really appeal to those users.

So this would suggest they didn’t know their target audience as well as they’d hoped, and failed to anticipate how they would react. Plus we’re only just getting good bots now. Presently, we’re competing with established exchanges with an established userbase, trying to convince user to make that switch. Without first having strong incentives in place, ones which appeal to those users and what they value most, good luck.

As you mentioned, the competition (pertaining solely to the trading aspect) have little-to-no barrier to entry, and many have ridiculous leverage to the tune of 125x. Quick & easy money-making potential, to lure in all the foolhardy gamblers of which a significant portion of this space is comprised.

Also, it’s difficult for the community to refer others to the exchange, when >95% friends & family probably aren’t involved with crypto, let alone traders.

Thankfully everything is interconnected, so even if traders didn’t flock to Nash right away, the systems that were developed are still critical components which underpins future services yet to be provided. Given what I mentioned above, the best the community can do to help in the current situation is: 1. run bots; 2. continue providing feedback for future iterations; 3. remain active on twitter, mentioning Nash to others and seeking external feedback.

The more I think about things like ‘Nash Savings’, the more excited I am to see it take form. This is something which I could shill to pretty much every single person that I know, and the only barrier to entry may be KYC, which most people I know are used to (bank, PayPal, etc.) and would be perfectly reasonable for this service. More importantly, the competition here is minimal, and more than likely have circumvented regulations. There’s no upfront cost to make a Nash account, and merely a flat-% service fee for the savings feature, which the user doesn’t need to concern themselves with. Set & forget (easy) with the promise of good returns (money). Easy money. People will flock to that, especially crypto-curious individuals who’ve yet to dabble in investing or research the space.

A ‘Savings’ feature provides a slight dividend boost to NEX stakers, and both of these systems are directly tied to Nash Pay, as users look for an avenue to conveniently spend some of those earnings. having a ‘savings’ system which generates a spread of assets (similar to NEX) would see the matching engine being utilized more, thus generating more volume.

The most important part about this, is the ‘savings’ users will likely refer others, provided the returns make it worth the effort. This self-perpetuating marketing could see account signups go parabolic in <6 months, and that is how mass adoption begins taking place. If Nash looks and feels as familiar as PayPal or a traditional bank account (which I believe it does), then this could all occur within a very short window, but only once everything is in place - and then you’re on the path to >1 million users who love your product.

Any system which is functionally similar to this one, is imo our best shot at kicking off mass adoption. For both crypto and Nash. Brainstorm similar services.

3 Likes
#15

Nailed it … any room to improve this ?