Brokers have been using crypto for years now, primarily to accept client deposits. But that has often felt like they were doing so because they had to, rather than because they wanted to. Can that change?

As readers may be aware, I am not always the world’s biggest crypto fan. However, one of the use cases I do find convincing is stablecoins. It’s the technology that more nerd-oriented execs seem to find the most compelling as well.

It’s also an area that Deus X Pay is banking on, with their NeXus feature. The company, which specialises in stablecoin services, has launched a solution that allows brokers and other companies in their ecosystem to make and receive payments instantly, for free. Firms then have fast, simple off-ramps that allow them to convert into fiat currencies, including USD, EUR, and AED.

A group of brokers, liquidity providers, and other companies operating in the FX/CFD broker space are already making use of the solution. That includes firms like Eightcap and the Rostro Group brands, Scope Markets and Scope Prime.

A key part of the appeal, beyond cost, is not really that different from the reason end clients often like depositing and withdrawing in crypto – it’s fast. However, the benefits that a company accrues are arguably far greater than their retail counterparts, given the potential that exists to smooth out different operations within the business.

For example, some brokers are now tied to their LP within NeXus. These firms can now put down margin with their LP on an intraday basis, with settlement time of just 12 seconds, as a result.

According to the Deus X Pay team, this has helped end brokers using NeXus free up more cash, which they would have otherwise kept tied up with their liquidity provider.

“The model for brokers has basically been that they dump a lump sum with their LP, which can often be a large amount of idle cash,” said Richard Crook, CEO at Deus X Pay. “LPs can feel more flexible with their margin terms using this solution, because they know that, if they do need a broker to deposit more with them, it can happen almost immediately. Both parties have much greater peace of mind. They know they can fix a problem very quickly if it arises, which I think explains the uptake we’ve seen so far.

“We’ve seen this recently too. When gold price volatility increases, liquidity providers and brokers are required to settle larger amounts more frequently. Eventually, a traditional payment method is likely to fail, leading to a liquidity crisis that could pose significant risks. NeXus offers a solution to this challenge.”

According to Crook, the company is also seeing brokers use NeXus for intercompany transfers and for basic tasks such as paying suppliers. This seems to often be one of those mundane sorts of activities that becomes weirdly stressful, purely because of the limits that exist within regular payment systems.

For example, a broker might have entities in the UK, Dubai, and Australia. However, a contractual relationship is between the Dubai entity and another counterparty. If the Dubai firm suddenly needs to make a large payment, then the UK firm can transfer stablecoins to them via NeXus. The company can then instantly withdraw that payment in AED to their bank account and make the payment to the third-party.

Alternatively, a firm may STP flow in one entity and so book group revenues in another. Again, the NeXus system would mean that intercompany transfer can happen almost instantly and at no cost.

“Our vision is ultimately that we have all or most industry participants using NeXus,” said Crook. “Because when we get to that point, it removes so much friction from existing payment processes. We have had situations where companies literally couldn’t pay their suppliers because of banking problems. When both parties are on NeXus, that problem goes away.”

What may help that process is a trend towards greater acceptance – for lack of a better term – of cryptocurrencies, particularly stablecoins. When you have people like Larry Fink saying they think it’s worth using, things start to change and more companies start to look seriously at how they can use the technology for themselves.

“Leave aside the crypto or stablecoin branding for a second,” said Crook. “If you are a large company with several entities globally and I said, ‘here is a product that lets you pay your suppliers and move money between your different companies instantly and at no cost’, wouldn’t that at least pique your interest? That is something which simply did not exist 10 or 15 years ago. Now it does.”