Bitget Wallet Launches Dollar, Euro Accounts for Freelancers Without Foreign Addresses

Bitget Wallet has launched a feature that lets users receive US dollar and euro bank transfers into accounts in their own names, without a US or European address, a credit history or a branch visit.

The self-custodial crypto wallet, which says it has more than 100 million users, announced the product, called Virtual Account, on Tuesday. Noah, a licensed stablecoin payments company, provides the accounts.

Users get account details that accept transfers through US ACH and Fedwire, Europe’s SEPA network and SWIFT.
Incoming funds are converted automatically into the USDT or USDC stablecoins and credited to the user’s wallet. Senders see the user as the account holder.

The launch covers incoming payments only. Bitget Wallet said outbound bank transfers will follow in the coming months. Until then, users can spend the funds with the Bitget Wallet Card or QR payments, send them to others, or move them into the wallet’s earning products, crypto assets and tokenised real world assets.

Bitget Wallet said fees can be as low as $2 on a $500 transfer, about 0.4 percent. World Bank figures put the global average cost of sending remittances at roughly 6 percent.

Traditional cross-border payments usually pass through several correspondent banks, and each one adds cost and delay.

The product targets remote workers, freelancers who bill clients in the US and Europe, and families who receive remittances. Across Africa, opening a US or European bank account usually requires proof of residency in that jurisdiction. That requirement has kept most individuals and small businesses from settling directly in dollars or euros.

“Crypto wallets are expanding beyond storage to provide essential international banking channels,” said Alvin Kan, chief operating officer of Bitget Wallet. “By embedding payment rails directly into self-custodial wallets, we offer users in emerging markets a direct path into the global financial system.”

Shah Ramezani, founder and chief executive of Noah, said dollar and euro accounts had “traditionally been out of reach for many users in these regions.” He said the integration gives users “foreign account access and cross-border settlement while maintaining sole custody of their funds.”

The company gave examples from three markets. In Nigeria, freelancers can put the US and EU account details on their invoices and receive payment by ACH, Fedwire or SEPA. In South Africa, remote workers on foreign payrolls can receive salaries directly and spend locally with the card. In Morocco, the euro account connects to SEPA, so contractors and families can receive money from clients and relatives in the European Union.

Because deposits are converted into stablecoins, recipients hold USDT or USDC in the wallet, not a conventional bank balance. Bitget Wallet said a $300 million protection fund backs user assets.

Virtual Account is part of the wallet’s Onchain Payments Matrix, which also includes its card, QR payment and transfer services. It is available now in the Bitget Wallet app.

The company is refunding transaction fees for the first 1,000 eligible users who make a qualifying deposit.