How does Striga compare to Banking as a Service solutions?
How does Striga compare to Banking as a Service solutions?
- Mousser R.
- 9 min read
Table of Contents
What is a BaaS?
A Banking as a Service (BaaS) company is one that offers banking infrastructure for other companies to integrate into their own products, so they can offer banking features. Traditionally, they tend to hold Electronic Money Institution Licenses and connect directly to BIN Sponsors.
Examples of them are Contis, Railsbank, and Modulr, though there are many others.
What is Crypto-BaaS?
Crypto banking-as-a-service refers to companies that provide banking infrastructure —usually both crypto & fiat— for other companies to integrate into their products. Crypto-BaaS usually offer features regarding:
- Crypto wallets
- Crypto exchanges
- IBAN accounts for individual users
- Virtual and Physical Cards
- KYC & AML controls
Examples of them are Striga, Solid, and Synapse
Where do they overlap?
BaaS and Crypto-BaaS overlap in card issuing and IBAN account creation. Basically, as the name implies, Crypto functionalities (wallet, exchange, crypto KYC/AML) are what makes Crypto-BaaS special.
Striga Vs. BaaS:
Time to Market
BaaS: The integration to a BaaS platform usually takes anywhere between 3 and 8 months, though it can vary a bit depending on the provider and the features to be implemented.
Striga takes between 6 weeks and 3 months to fully deploy a product, from the moment you make the decision, through the integrations, until going live.
Verdict: Striga is the faster option overall.
Striga
BaaS
Time to Market
1.5 – 3 months
3 – 8 months
Striga Vs. BaaS:
Financials
BaaS: Banking-as-a-service providers have been known to charge between USD 70,000 and 300,000 as an upfront cost, with monthly minimums or subscriptions in the USD 3,000 – 30,000 range, though it may vary depending on each particular case.
Striga: The Crypto-BaaS platform of Striga charges EUR 5,000 as an upfront/integration cost, plus EUR 3,000 monthly.
Verdict: Striga is, by a long shot, the cheaper option, though BaaS may get cheaper as the volume of transactions scales.
Financials
Striga
BaaS
Upfront Cost (EUR)
5,000
100,000 – 300,000
Monthly Minimum / Subscription Fee (EUR)
3,000
3,000-30,000
Striga Vs. BaaS:
Services Offered
BaaS and Striga offer a relatively similar service portfolio. Except for crypto wallets and exchange functionalities —which only Striga offers— they both include the following:
- White label infrastructure
- Individual IBAN accounts
- Physical and Virtual Card Issuing
- Apple Pay & Google Pay support (Tokenization)
- Product lifecycle management via a dashboard
Verdict: In terms of services, on the Fiat side, both options are good. If crypto functionalities are desired, Striga is the only way to go.
Services
Striga
BaaS
White Label Infrastructure
Yes
Yes
Native Crypto Support
Yes
No
Crypto Wallets
Yes
No
Crypto Exchange Features
Yes
No
Individual IBAN accounts
Yes
Yes
Physical and Virtual Card Issuing
Yes
Yes
Apple Pay & Google Pay
Yes
Yes
Product lifecycle management via dashboard
Yes
Yes
Striga Vs. BaaS:
Technical Setup
Besides the documentation being high-quality, the 4 following elements make the technical setup friendlier:
- Publicly available sandbox: Striga offers one, BaaS providers sometimes do, but there’s no guarantee. Some of them choose to keep behind an approval process.
- The number of partners required: Assuming you start from scratch, to go live with a full crypto banking platform, you need the BaaS and 3 other partnerships (Wallet provider, Exchange connectivity, and KYC/AML partner). Striga, on the other hand, is already connected with all of the above, so you only need the connection to Striga.
- Interactive setup guide: Though all companies have setup guides, they tend to be static. Striga is the only one with a guide that actually connects to its servers interactively, so clients can test and learn in real-time each step of the guide.
- Public API Documentation: Striga has publicly available documentation, as do most BaaS providers.
Verdict: Connecting to Striga requires less effort given the extensive availability of resources it provides, as well as the simplicity of connecting to only one partner, as opposed to 3 on top of the BaaS.
Technical Setup
Striga
BaaS
Publicly Available Sandbox
Yes
Sometimes
Number of Partners Required to Go Live
1
3
Interactive Setup Guide
Yes
No
Public API Documentation
Yes
Yes
Striga Vs. BaaS
Regulation & Compliance
So, integrations were easy to connect, the app has all the features your user’s love, and it is actually making you money due to great financials. The only thing that could put a stop to it is making a regulatory mistake and getting shut down.
There are 3 things to know if you want to stay in business: Know your customer (KYC), Anti-money laundering (AML), and Licenses. The big question here is “who handles the KYC/AML process and holds the licenses”. Being in charge allows for more flexibility, but requires more resources and responsibility.
- On KYC: BaaS providers, usually, require their sponsored clients to take handle their own KYC operations. Outsourcing it or building it is generally necessary. Striga doesn’t allow for KYC outsourcing, it handles it on behalf of the client.
- On AML: BaaS providers, usually, require their sponsored clients to take handle their own AML operations. Outsourcing it or building it is generally necessary. Striga doesn’t allow for AML outsourcing, it handles it on behalf of the client.
- On Licenses: Striga does not require its clients to hold virtual asset licenses or commercial registrations. BaaS providers, on the other hand, do. They usually require either a detailed registration with them or a digital asset-related license.
Verdict: BaaS providers are more flexible in terms of oversight, but require more responsibility on the clients’ part too. Overall, BaaS providers are better in terms of regulatory flexibility if you have the time, money, and resources to get the licenses and build the KYC/AML operation. Striga is better if you don’t have them, and just want to focus on building your product.
Regulation & Compliance
Striga
BaaS
Outsourceable KYC
No
Yes
Outsourceable AML
No
Yes
Licenses or Commercial Registrations NOT Required
Yes
No
Verdict
Is Striga better than the average BaaS?
It really depends on what you are looking for.
If what you want is a partner with a fiat-only banking focus, and extensive resources to expend, then a BaaS may make sense. Usually, this makes more sense if you’re already a big company because BaaS can get cheap at a high volume transactional level.
If, on the other hand, you are interested in building both fiat and crypto infrastructure, and would prefer to spend fewer resources on the project, then Striga is the solution for you. Striga is ideal for growing companies that want a solution that leaves them space to breathe and expand their operations.
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