Crypto Wallet Abra Announces Direct Transactions From EU Banks in SEPA

Global crypto wallet Abra has enabled the direct purchase and sale of cryptocurrencies for European bank accounts, according to a press-release published by PR Newswire Tuesday, September 4.

Abra, which offers 28 cryptocurrencies for consumers worldwide, will now support Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) bank accounts. As the company’s official Twitter states, the launch of in-app European bank purchases of digital currency has already started.

Customers can now transfer euros or several other national currencies directly to their wallet which can, in turn, can be converted into the 28 cryptocurrencies offered by Abra including Ethereum (ETH), Litecoin (LTC), and Ripple (XRP).

Bill Barhydt, founder and CEO of Abra, further explained the innovation:

"With users from over 70 countries globally, and a greater demand for the ability to invest in cryptocurrencies from any bank account, it is really important to give investors the opportunity to fund their Abra wallet directly from any bank account."

Along with backing SEPA bank accounts, Abra has announced three new coins recently added to the wallet: Cardano (ADA), Basic Attention Token (BAT), and Tron (TRX).

Until today’s announcement, the Abra wallet could only be funded by U.S. bank and wire transfers in the United States, along with American Express, Visa, and MasterCard debit and credit cards around the world.

The Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA) is a payment system that simplifies bank transfers in the EU. Currently, it includes 28 EU members, together with the four member states of the European Free Trade Association (Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland), and Andorra, Monaco, and San Marino.

As Cointelegraph reported back in March 2018, major U.S. crypto wallet and exchange Coinbase received an e-money license from the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) to conduct its fiat activities in Great Britain, as well as in the 23 countries within the European Union. It was not immediately clear if Coinbase could keep the EU license in the future due to Brexit.