Hello, we are the Plutus.it team, and we are building the next generation contactless payment system (and later online as well) for Bitcoin and Ethereum, ask us anything!
When we did our AMA here last year, we were at the initial proof of concept stage of the Plutus tap and pay app. We have come a long way since then by improving on the inner workings of the app, and our decentralised exchange. After releasing the White Paper, we have seen overwhelming support with new members joining the team and a high volume of sign-ups to our newsletter.
Although Bitcoin itself is the most ideal payment system, we wanted to facilitate the use of Bitcoin for everyday purchases, a practical use case that has been held back by merchant adoption since it’s inception. Plutus solves this by connecting into the fiat payment system. This means that you can send Bitcoin to your Plutus account, and pay with the mobile app at any existing contactless terminal. (In the future, online payments will be available as well.)
But Plutus isn’t just another NFC or a payments app. Plutus Tap & Pay is fueled by the backbone of the system: the PlutusDEX. This platform facilitates the conversion of users Bitcoin deposits to fiat in a peer-to-peer manner, issuing an automatic 3% rebate to users denominated in an Ethereum asset called Pluton (which you can get early to be used to make instant payments without conversion fees).
Our solution creates a practical bridge between Bitcoin / Ethereum and the virtual debit card system, which means that you don’t have to wait for brick & mortar merchants to accept bitcoin. Simply go to the point of sale, and hold your phone over the NFC reader!
We plan to launch later this year, but our top priority is security. There will be formal security audits of the PlutusDEX and it’s smart contracts before we launch.
( However, note that Plutus and the PlutusDEX never actually store any BTC or ETH, and instead redirect them to traders on-the-fly, making available attack surface much smaller than with contracts that store funds or accept custom user input. )
Bitcoin Payment Process Video and FAQ
Ethereum Payment Process at merchant - Checkout in under 2 minutes! (Video)
We hope that makes sense! Let us know if you have any questions. You can join our growing community in slack, reddit or any of our other social media channels.
Tl;Dr: Contactless mobile payments (Tap & Pay) with Bitcoin and Ethereum without having to wait for merchants. Liquidity provided by peers on the PlutusDEX. Online payments will be added in the future.