Could bypassing FSC regulations to buy crypto with a card be possible? OdinTean rolls out Wallet Pro, a service to buy crypto with U.S. debit cards

OwlTing introduces OwlPay and Wallet Pro services. By partnering with international payment giants and leveraging stablecoin technology, it enables B2B cross-border payments. It also uses the advantage of an offshore entity to connect with international financial systems.

【This article was published at 13:00 on 4/13, with the last updated time at 22:30 (supplementing the OwlTing Group statement in the third paragraph of this article)】

From e-commerce to fintech, OwlTing’s cross-border payment expansion shows strategic ambition

Taiwanese blockchain company OwlTing (OwlTing) successfully went public in the United States on Nasdaq last year through a direct listing (Direct Listing). The stock ticker is OWLS.

The company’s transformation journey is quite remarkable. It began in the early days with an e-book platform called “Ebooker,” then expanded into small-farmer e-commerce and blockchain traceability systems. Over the past decade, OwlTing has continued to put blockchain technology into practice—from helping the government establish forest product traceability records in its early stage, to later applying the technology to reservation inventory management in the hospitality industry. At this stage, OwlTing is shifting its focus entirely to fintech and launching its flagship cashflow service product OwlPay.

The company has positioned itself as a fintech firm, and through partnerships with international investment institutions such as Japan’s SBI, it aims to build the infrastructure for stablecoin payments. OwlPay mainly targets enterprise-level B2B cross-border payments. By using stablecoin technology to speed up transfers and lower transaction fees, it is intended to address the challenges of traditional bank cross-border settlement that can take days and involve cumbersome, complex processes. The vision OwlTing presents to the market is to build an Asia-based payments giant like Stripe. Its development logic is to extend blockchain’s “prevention of double spending” feature—from agricultural traceability and hotel inventory management to cashflow settlement. This strategy of moving from real-world applications to core financial services helps it demonstrate a distinctive business path amid intense competition in the blockchain industry.

Wallet Pro connects international payment infrastructure, and its technical architecture enables cross-border buying of crypto

Wallet Pro, OwlTing’s personal payment wallet, is an important実 practical step as it moves into the virtual asset retail market. The core competitive strength of this product is built on its partnership with the international payment giant MoneyGram, with use cases focused on remittances for migrant workers and individual cross-border cashflow.

Wallet Pro uses blockchain technology to allow users to buy $USDC stablecoins with cash at specific physical stores, and then make international transfers. The biggest technical highlight of this product is that its architecture directly connects to the Visa Direct system, and it clearly marks support for “U.S.” signature debit card transactions.

This model shows OwlTing’s offshore entity advantage as a U.S.-listed company. Through direct connectivity with international card networks, Wallet Pro can process cashflows from U.S.-issuing institutions, thereby enabling integration between virtual asset settlement and traditional fiat settlement systems.

Although this service is currently designed for signature cards issued in the United States, its core technical logic demonstrates a possibility for providing users with an asset conversion pathway through offshore compliant channels. This design reflects the company’s flexibility in product strategy and attempts to find more efficient funding channels for the use of virtual assets within existing international financial networks.

Avoiding domestic regulatory restrictions, offshore service entities challenge the boundaries of regulatory jurisdiction

OwlTing’s U.S. signature card buy-crypto service has sparked in-depth discussions in the market about regulatory boundaries. Because this business directly connects to the Visa Direct system and supports U.S. signature debit cards, its nature is an offshore transaction service.

Against the backdrop of Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) strictly prohibiting domestic banks’ cards from conducting virtual asset transactions, OwlTing’s model provides a technical solution. This business is judged as cross-border services provided by an offshore company rather than a simple domestic business, so it can operate outside the specific regulations currently applied to Taiwan virtual asset service providers (VASP).

The FSC’s regulatory scope mainly focuses on domestic companies and businesses providing services within Taiwan. For activities of domestic companies that operate offshore and connect to foreign financial systems, it is typically beyond the FSC’s jurisdiction. When users use a U.S. signature debit card, the resulting transaction takes place under the U.S. financial regulatory regime rather than within Taiwan’s jurisdiction.

This “offshore service, domestic use” model is a strategy adopted by many fintech companies with international backgrounds. In response to external doubts, OwlTing’s CEO showed a firm attitude, emphasizing that if media or individuals distort information, it may constitute misleading market conduct—reflecting the company’s determination to maintain the legality of its cross-border business and its market image.

OwlTing Group statement

Regarding the relevant business structure, the OwlTing Group today (4/13) published a clarification in 《Crypto City》 with the following two points:

1. Emphasize that the OwlPay U.S. dollar stablecoin signature debit card functionality is currently provided only to U.S. users. It is not launched in Taiwan and is also not open to users in Taiwan. This service must be used through qualified bank signature debit cards issued in the United States, and it includes a complete KYC identity verification mechanism.
2. This service is independently executed within the United States by OwlTing USA, Inc., the OwlTing Group’s U.S. subsidiary. Its business activities are fully governed by U.S. federal and state-level financial regulations, including anti-money laundering compliance requirements under the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

OwlTing also reiterates that the Group complies with the laws of the relevant jurisdictions across its global operating markets. If the Group promotes any related financial services in Taiwan in the future, it will first obtain complete approvals from the competent authorities. This legal boundary between “offshore services” and “domestic entity” clearly defines the territorial nature of its services.

Virtual asset services bill approved, a new path for offshore providers to enter the market

On April 9, 2026, the Executive Yuan officially approved the draft of the “Virtual Asset Services Act,” symbolizing a new phase in the rule-of-law management of Taiwan’s virtual asset industry. Under this bill, virtual asset service providers are subdivided into seven major categories: trading platforms, exchange providers, transfer service providers, custody providers, issuers, investment advisors, and other publicly announced providers, all of which adopt a licensing-based system comprehensively.

The new law imposes strict requirements on asset custody. It explicitly states that stablecoins may not be issued with interest, and it also establishes severe penalty provisions of up to NT$200 million for conduct involving fraud. The publication of this law aims to improve business operations and protect the rights and interests of traders, and it poses a significant compliance challenge for domestic providers.

• Related news: 2026 latest》Virtual Asset Services Act draft—easy guide: stablecoins, licenses, and penalties fully explained

In an environment where compliance thresholds are rising, OwlTing’s offshore detour model has sparked open-ended thinking about future market competition. As Taiwan’s virtual asset regulations become increasingly stringent, will this approach of using an offshore entity’s identity and connecting to international financial infrastructure become the standard playbook for other offshore providers entering the Taiwan market?

When domestic providers must bear high compliance costs and business limitations, if service providers with international backgrounds continue to offer more flexible funding options through technical means, it will have a far-reaching impact on the local regulatory framework and market structure.

The integration of decentralized technology with cross-border financial networks is continuously challenging traditional jurisdictional regulations tied to geography. Market participants will continue to test how accommodating the regulations can be, seeking a balance between innovation and compliance.