Problem

The current payment systems and the adoption of blockchain technology face several critical challenges:

High Fee Structures

Traditional fiat-based payment networks—such as credit card systems—involve multiple intermediaries, including card companies, payment gateways (PGs), and banks. As a result, the transaction fees can be quite high. Merchants typically pay 2% to 5% of the transaction amount in credit card processing fees, with smaller merchants often facing even greater burdens. In cases of international payments or currency exchange, the fees increase further, reducing profit margins for small businesses and ultimately contributing to higher prices for consumers.

Settlement Delays

In the centralized traditional payment systems, there is often a delay of several days between when a transaction occurs and when the merchant actually receives the funds. For instance, credit card payments are generally settled into the merchant’s account within 2 to 4 business days. This delay complicates cash flow management, especially for small businesses. If the transaction takes place near a weekend or holiday, the delay can be even longer, creating operational constraints for merchants.

Limitations of Centralization

Traditional payment infrastructure is managed by a small number of centralized entities. This centralized nature leads to issues such as system outages without backup solutions, data leaks or hacking risks from central operators, and service restrictions due to policy changes or transaction rejections. Users must entrust their funds and transaction data to third parties, resulting in a lack of transparency and autonomy. In contrast, blockchain-based payments are validated through decentralized networks, enhancing both security and transparency by eliminating intermediaries. However, most current implementations have not fully capitalized on the benefits of decentralization—highlighting a fundamental limitation of today’s systems.

Complexity and Cost of Blockchain Adoption

While blockchain holds tremendous potential, it remains difficult to adopt due to high technical barriers. For merchants or businesses to implement their own blockchain-based payment systems, they must invest heavily in specialized developers, node infrastructure, and security management. In addition to infrastructure expenses, the cost of training and onboarding also poses a significant burden, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and individual merchants. Furthermore, the complexity of decision-making—such as which blockchain platform to adopt (e.g., Ethereum, BNB Chain), or how to hedge against cryptocurrency price volatility—deters broader adoption. As a result, despite its innovative potential, blockchain payments remain largely confined to early adopters and large enterprises.

Accessibility Issues for Users

For the general public, the experience of using cryptocurrency remains inconvenient. Users must create dedicated wallets, securely store private keys, and navigate complex steps for each transaction. These processes are cumbersome even for tech-savvy users, and represent significant barriers for non-experts. For example, making a crypto payment often involves opening multiple wallet apps, copying and pasting wallet addresses, and confirming transactions—making it slower and more error-prone compared to paying with cash or cards. Moreover, blockchain transactions are irreversible, which creates anxiety for users worried about mistakes. Due to poor user experience (UX) design and limited awareness, cryptocurrency has yet to become a mainstream payment method.

Traditional payment systems offer convenience but come with high costs and centralization concerns. In contrast, blockchain-based payments are innovative but face challenges such as technical complexity and lack of user-friendliness.

MIH aims to solve both issues simultaneously.