Cryptocurrencies and blockchain have suffered turbulent times and the landscape continues to evolve. Remember when crypto surged 2000% in 2017 and FOMO reigned — even your Aunt was calling you up asking how she’d gotten her hands on some of that gold dust.
Bitcoin was the popular cool dude in the room. Then everything cratered. Cryptocurrency became like a bad smell, it garnered a ponzi scheme reputation in some markets and by association it brought its cousin blockchain down with it.
It’s all unfortunate because blockchain, with its robust trust system, is proving to be as profoundly revolutionary as the internet was, and crypto allows people to benefit from lower fees, fraud reduction, instancy, and an enticing lack of barriers.
Because blockchain is to assets what the internet is to content — for the first time in history you can move value instantly from one place to the other side of the world with no intermediary.
The thing is it’s not really accessible or digestible to everyone and therefore it’s too complicated for immediate widespread adoption; managing private keys and buying and selling crypto is complex; you need to open an account on an exchange, get a wallet, manage keys and passwords. In most countries you need to pass lengthy and complex Know Your Customer hurdles.
There’s just so much friction involved; a transaction takes a long time, uses a lot of energy and involves a lot of risk (bitcoin is very easy to lose). When it’s not a necessity, why bother with the hardship?
The climate is changing fast as our digital lifestyle begs for self-custody; increased security, increased efficiency and mainstream readiness. We are in the middle of a revolution in payments and this is a time of opportunity — even the Bank of England and the US government are deciding about introducing CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currency).
Its recognition of the necessity for change is proof that there are future needs in a digital economy that the current system will not meet. There is a necessity to improve availability and usability of money, to address the consequences of a decline in cash to establish building blocks for better cross-border payments and of course to establish resilience.
At Tangem, we want to make it easy for everyone to transact on a digital ledger. We want to make crypto more human — we want to make digital transactions more human.
We want to make sure you can safely and easily transact and store your digital currency securely wherever you are, in a way that’s so easy that there’s zero learning curve, so even your Babushka can do it. It’s the perfect gift to initiate someone into crypto, while being as capable as an HSM (Hardware Security Module).
Our cards are physical manifestations of digital assets — so by holding one of our cards you are holding say, bitcoin. Think of it like a very, very secure wallet. The Tangem Card harnesses the power of blockchain by computing sophisticated cryptography on a tiny chip, long story short — there are no pesky passkeys to remember (because the key is generated within the chip, which absolutely no one can access).
All you need to do is tap to transact, much like you do in many other areas of your life, be that getting on the tube, buying something at a 7eleven or buying a coffee in a coffee store.
In short you don’t need to be blockchain literate. We see ourselves as a gateway to financial inclusion, to the ecosystem that gives you all the benefits listed above.
We also wanted to make the process fun and beautiful. So without further ado meet our bird collection cards, a motif for freedom because that’s exactly what these cards should give you access to…
1.) Bitcoin BTC Snowy Owl TangemCard
Meet our Snowy Owl surrounded by a blossoming Helichrysum.
Fun fact: Snowy owls are native to Arctic regions in North America and the Palaearctic. Males are almost all white, while females have more flecks of black plumage. Juvenile snowy owls have black feathers until they turn white.
Get one here: https://bit.ly/3a8PuPT
2.) Ethereum ETH Dove TangemCard
Our Dove surrounded by Crassula erosula ‘Campfire.' Doves are amazing animals. Their capacity to find their way home over hundreds, even thousands of kilometres is unrivalled in the animal kingdom. This uncanny ability has seen them used for centuries to deliver messages for royalty, military leaders and other notable figures.
Fun Fact: Doves mate for life.
You can get your hands on our ETH cards here: https://bit.ly/2J80KjB
3.) Stellar Lumens XLM Pheasant TangemCard
The glorious pheasant surrounded by Thymus Citriodorus ‘Lemon Thyme’. A pheasant can reach a flight speed of up to 60mph. Pheasants are social birds and flock together. Despite common belief Pheasants are not native to Britain: it’s thought that the Romans first brought them here.
You can get one at: https://bit.ly/2QLD3BO
4.) Ripple XRP Sparrow TangemCard
The Sparrow surrounded by Phyllostachys Aurea ‘Golden Bamboo’.
Facts: Sparrows are very sociable birds and live in flocks. Few birds are happier in the company of humans than the sparrow.
Find one here: https://bit.ly/39m0yIj
5.) Bitcoin Cash BCH Cardinal TangemCard
Presenting The Cardinal. Here the Cardinal basks in Ceanothus ‘Dark Star’ (California Lilac). You’ll often find him mid song.
Fun fact: they’re named after catholic bishops due to their particular shade of red that’s reminiscent of their gowns.
Find one here: https://bit.ly/2Jf6U1g hashtag
It’s likely that you have an affinity with one or the other, but just as these birds have the freedom to move through blue skies, transcend borders and deliver messages in the most simple and naturalistic way, so do we hope that these Tangem Cards enable autonomy, freedom and the free flow of value to whomever you’d like to transact with and introduce a new world of frictionless value transfer.