Virtex

Virtex.com is a cryptocurrency exchange operating out of Lithuania dealing in Bitcoin, Litecoin, the US dollar and euro, and related fiat-cryptocurrency pairs.

Virtex operates a model, which at a fundamental level is similar to those that have seen success under the most well-known market operators. The user experience is streamlined to combine ease of access, flexibility and reliability for both trading and related activities.

Registration can be initiated solely via inputting an email address, whereupon a one-time username and password is generated and sent as a confirmation to the address. Signing in using these credentials opens an account, whereupon the password should be changed and further details added. Company CEO, Mantas Gustys explains: 

"Virtex operates a verification process similar to most of the major operators, requiring government- issued document copies to be submitted before fiat operations may be attempted. We allow users to deposit/withdraw and trade without verification, though there are certain limits in place. We wouldn't want to concentrate on this though, because we are going to change the limits. This is still a beta system that we are going to change, so we don't need any extra attention on it at the moment.”

The account panel is divided into buy/ sell trading, transactions, deposit, withdrawal, and account housekeeping tabs. These permit access to the full range of services, while account balance information is visible at all times regardless of the tab selected.

Virtex currently offers market and limit trading for BTC-USD, BTC-EUR, BTC-LTC, LTC-USD, and LTC-EUR pairs. Live feeds of recent orders are present in the trading tab, with a data chart currently visible on the main order book page outside the individual user account.

Virtex supports one of the largest ranges of account funding options on the market, which is further extended via its voucher system. At present, EgoPay, Payza, OKPay, Perfect Money, AstroPay, and standard wire and SEPA transfers for USD and EUR respectively, may be used for deposits. Withdrawals are available via the same means, with the exception of Astropay.

Via the use of Virtex Vouchers, it is possible to use an even greater variety of payment processors in conjunction with Virtex to facilitate transfer operations. Third party funds are converted into a voucher, which is then redeemed on the exchange itself. 

Fees for deposits and withdrawals are competitive, and include 0% for wire transfers.

Virtex offers a support form for personal contact, with individual ID credentials sent to users following submission of the first ticket. A live chat service is also operating. Support is available in English, Chinese and Russian languages.

A blog and news feed is also maintained to provide additional information about upcoming changes and innovations. 

Virtex seeks to offer a unique currency exchange solution in providing maximum flexibility, while maintaining the highest standards of security and personalized support services, which have come to be assumed as standard in today’s market.

Where Virtex exceeds expectations is in its funding opportunities. A long list of payment processors is further expanded upon via Virtex Vouchers, allowing a huge variety of options for combining preferred third party services with Virtex’s highly competitive fees.

The range of account funding options enables a significantly higher proportion of potential customers to operate quickly and in a financially efficient manner using the exchange and range of partners. The impact of the customer’s geographical location has been reduced to the bare minimum.

Virtex began operating in summer 2014. Registered in the Seychelles and operating out of Kaunas, Lithuania, a dynamic multicultural team heads operations with a growing presence in the EU digital currency community.

Despite a relatively short history as of December 2014, the company is set to grow considerably through implementation of a range of improvements and additions to its services in the near future.

As of December 2014, Virtex now offers BTC-LTC trading in addition to its crypto-fiat pairs.

Cointelegraph reached out to CEO Mantas Gustys for more information about Virtex’s journey, its ethos and the raft of upgrades and improvements on the horizon for the fledgling exchange.

CT:   Virtex is a relatively new addition to the Bitcoin exchange market. What inspired you to start Virtex, and which hurdles have you needed to overcome in order to make it a success? What has the reception been like so far?

MG:  About a year and a half ago, when there was only one major exchange, it was rather hard to acquire Bitcoins. Users were limited to a very narrow choice of funding methods. We saw this as a pain point from a user’s perspective, and we knew that we can make things a lot easier. That was when the idea of Virtex was born. From that day onward there have been a lot of hurdles that we had to overcome. But I am glad to say that we dealt with every one of them efficiently, professionally and most importantly - we never let any obstacle be bigger than us.

The reception has been positive generally. Of course we have encountered skepticism, but people always feel this way about things that they are not yet familiar with. Once people start to get to know us they usually respond with positive feedback.

CT:   Competition in the Bitcoin exchange market has always been fierce as more new players enter the market. Which section of the market did you set out to appeal to?

MG:  To be completely honest with you - we have never really thought about the threat of our competitors, or how to take over their market share, etc. We do everything we can, as good as we can, and we never worry about others around us. By fulfilling our job to a maximum level possible, we simply put it out on display, and people come to us.

That said though, our initial intent was to appeal to the casual user. We wanted to ease the transition from fiat money to cryptocurrency for any person that is interested in the technology, who sees the potential of Bitcoin, and who maybe wants to try it out. Bearing in mind that Bitcoin is still in its early days of adoption, we figured that this is the perfect place to stand.

We escort people over the bridge from fiat money to cryptocurrency in the most comfortable possible manner, and in turn we get a loyal customer, who will possibly invite his friends to check it out as well. But recently we figured that we can actually appeal to a much broader audience. That is why we have some major site improvements on the way that will provide all the necessary tools for the professional traders out there.

CT:   A hot topic of discussion recently has been the Bitcoin price index and its true accuracy. How do you ensure the reliability of your statistics and other information?

MG:  We have never encountered any issues related to our statistics, or information that originated from our platform. Also, we do not really rely on any external data, so I do not have that much to say on this topic. All I can say is that we ensure the reliability or our statistics through constant monitoring. We have a team of some of the best developers in Lithuania, who ensure that all the data is correct 100% of the time. We would not have it any other way.

CT:  Are there any future plans for Virtex which you're especially excited about sharing? Do you have designs for specific trading features or integrating further altcoins?

MG:  There are so many plans that it would probably take me a few weeks to explain everything in depth to you and the readers… To start with we are preparing to implement professional, forex-type trading features. We are doing this because we want Virtex to become the industry standard for both everyday users and professional traders at the same time.

Also, new funding methods (some of the most popular and most convenient ways to transfer funds globally) are going to be added to Virtex. This will not only ease the transition from fiat money to cryptocurrency for current users, but it will also help promote Bitcoin itself by making it more obtainable to new users.

The third big improvement will enable non-English users to use our services. We are currently translating the site into 5 additional languages. These are: Russian, Chinese, French, Spanish, Portuguese and Filipino. As we are a global exchange, we believe that providing the information to a user in his native language will make him feel closer to us.

CT:  The EU regulatory environment is a difficult one to navigate. How do you view the outlook for operating out of Lithuania in future? Would you consider relocating anywhere in particular to cement your position and ease of operating?
MG: Indeed the European regulations are relatively hard to navigate. That is why we are incorporated in Seychelles, which has a very welcoming environment for a Bitcoin exchange, comparable to the Isle of Man. This way we can manage all the necessary operations from our home, but retain the freedom that Seychelles provides.