On December 10th, 2019, Monerium and Tradeshift Frontiers carried out the world's first cross-border euro transaction on the Ethereum network. Using the Tradeshift platform, Tradeshift ordered goods from Shop Icelandic which in turn ordered the goods from their supplier, Nordic Store. Invoices and purchase orders were issued through Tradeshift smart-contracts and settled using Monerium e-money on-chain.
While Facebook was talking about their proposed cryptocurrency and blockchain linked to a basket of fiat currencies, Monerium was issuing fully licensed fiat-denominated e-money on an established blockchain, Ethereum.
The Financial Supervisory Authority of Iceland approved Reykjavik-based Monerium as its first electronic money institution in June. The designation means that Monerium has regulatory approval to provide fiat payment services on a blockchain and use it throughout the European Economic Area. Electronic money is a well-established regulatory framework in Europe that's been in use for years.
As an electronic money institution (EMI), we are issuing asset-backed e-money on blockchains. A regulated EMI provides customers with legal protections while gaining all of the advantages afforded by blockchains: sending, receiving, and storing digital money without going through a financial institution. In contrast, virtual currencies that transact on blockchains do not offer such protections, they are not subject to the same requirements of being asset-backed, redeemable, fully audited and supervised.
Using Tradeshift's platform and smart contracts on the Ethereum blockchain, Icelandic retailer Nordic Store purchased goods from IKEA Iceland and settled an e-invoice with Monerium's programmable digital cash.