Bypassing FSC regulations to buy crypto with a credit card: Is it possible? Odin Ding promotes Wallet Pro, a service for buying crypto with a U.S. debit card

OwlTing introduces the OwlPay and Wallet Pro services. By partnering with international payment giants and leveraging stablecoin technology, it enables B2B cross-border payments, and connects to the international financial system through the advantage of having an offshore entity.

【This article was published at 13:00 on 4/13, with the final update time at 22:30 (supplement: the OwlTing Group’s statement in the third paragraph of this article)】

From e-commerce to fintech, OwlTing’s cross-border payments strategy shows its ambition

Taiwanese blockchain company OwlTing (OwlTing) last year successfully listed on the Nasdaq in the United States through a direct listing (Direct Listing), with the stock ticker OWLS.

The company’s transformation story is quite notable. It began with the e-book platform “Ebookook,” then expanded into small-farmer e-commerce and blockchain traceability systems. Over the past decade, OwlTing has kept working to bring blockchain technology into real-world applications—starting from helping the government build records for traceability of forest products, and later applying the technology to booking inventory management for the lodging industry. At this stage, OwlTing has shifted its focus entirely to fintech and launched its flagship funds-flow service product, OwlPay.

The company has positioned itself as a fintech company. Through partnerships with international investment institutions such as Japan’s SBI, it aims to build the foundational infrastructure for stablecoin payments. OwlPay focuses on enterprise-level B2B cross-border payments; by leveraging stablecoin technology, it improves transfer speed and reduces transaction fees, aiming to solve the dilemma of traditional banks’ cross-border settlement taking several days and involving cumbersome, complex programming. What OwlTing presents to the market is a vision of building an Asia-based payments giant like Stripe. Its development logic is to extend blockchain’s built-in capability to prevent “double spending,” from agricultural traceability and hotel inventory management to funds-flow settlement. This strategy of shifting from real-world applications toward core financial services allows it to demonstrate a unique business pathway in the fiercely competitive blockchain industry.

Wallet Pro links international payment infrastructure, with a technical architecture that enables cross-border buying and cashing

Wallet Pro, the personal payment wallet launched by OwlTing, is a key real-world step as it enters the virtual-asset retail market. The product’s core competitiveness is built on its cooperation with the international payments giant MoneyGram, with use cases focused on remittances from migrant workers and personal cross-border fund flows.

Wallet Pro uses blockchain technology to let users buy $USDC stablecoins with cash at specific physical retail locations and then make cross-country transfers. The biggest technical highlight of this product lies in the fact that its architecture directly connects to the Visa Direct system, and it explicitly indicates support for transactions using “United States” signature debit cards.

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

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

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

The U.S. signature card buy-and-spend service launched by OwlTing has sparked in-depth discussion in the market about the boundary of regulatory oversight. Because the business directly connects to the Visa Direct system and supports U.S. signature debit cards, its essence falls under offshore transaction services.

Against the backdrop of Taiwan’s Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) strictly prohibiting domestic banks’ cards from engaging in virtual-asset transactions, OwlTing’s model provides a technical solution. This business is determined to be cross-border services provided by an offshore company rather than merely domestic business, and therefore can operate outside the specific regulations currently applied to Taiwan virtual asset service providers (VASPs).

The FSC’s regulatory scope mainly focuses on domestic companies and service providers that provide services within Taiwan. For businesses where domestic companies operate offshore and connect to foreign financial systems, their activities are generally beyond the FSC’s jurisdiction. When users use a U.S. signature debit card, the transaction occurs under the U.S. financial regulatory system rather than within Taiwan’s jurisdiction.

This “offshore services, domestic usage” model is a strategy adopted by many fintech companies with international backgrounds. In response to external doubts, OwlTing’s CEO took a firm stance, 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 related business structure, the OwlTing Group today (4/13) issued the following clarifications in 《Crypto City》:

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

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

A decision on the draft Virtual Asset Service Act paves a new path for offshore providers to enter the market

On April 9, 2026, Taiwan’s Executive Yuan formally approved the draft of the Virtual Asset Service Act, symbolizing that Taiwan’s virtual asset industry has entered a new stage of legalized management. The bill categorizes virtual asset service providers into seven major types: trading platforms, exchange operators, transfer service providers, custodians, issuers, investment advisers, and other publicly announced service providers, among others, and it adopts a licensing-and-permit system across the board.

The new law imposes strict requirements for asset custody. It explicitly states that stablecoins may not be issued with interest, and it also establishes hefty penalties of up to 200 million New Taiwan dollars for conduct involving fraud. The publication of this law aims to strengthen business operations and protect the rights of traders. For domestic operators, it is an especially significant compliance challenge.

• Related news: 2026 latest》 Virtual Asset Service Act draft quick guide: full breakdown of stablecoins, licenses, and penalties

In an environment where compliance thresholds are increasing, OwlTing’s offshore detour model has prompted 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 to connect with international financial infrastructure become the standard practice for other offshore operators entering the Taiwan market?

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

The integration of decentralized technologies and cross-border financial networks is continuously challenging traditional regional legal regulations. Market participants will keep testing how inclusive the regulations are, seeking a balance between innovation and compliance.