Bitget Wallet, a self-custodial crypto wallet serving over 100 million users, announced Tuesday the launch of the Virtual Account, enabling users to open USD and EUR accounts in their own name without requiring a US or European address, credit history, or physical branch visit.
Provided by licensed stablecoin payments company Noah, the feature supports incoming transfers via US ACH and Fedwire, European SEPA, and SWIFT. Received funds convert automatically into USDT or USDC stablecoins held directly in the user's wallet, with payers seeing the user as the account holder.
The service targets cross-border earners, including remote workers, freelancers billing US and EU clients, and remittance recipients. Bitget Wallet is also offering transaction fee refunds for the first 1,000 eligible users who make a qualifying deposit. It is available immediately in the Bitget Wallet app.
Virtual accounts bypass traditional correspondent banking rails to drastically cut cross-border transfer friction. With African entrepreneurs typically required to provide evidence of local residency, opening US or EU bank accounts have excluded most businesses from direct dollar and euro settlement. Cross-border payments rely on multi-tier intermediaries that drive average global remittance fees to roughly 6 percent, according to World Bank figures.
“Crypto wallets are expanding beyond storage to provide essential international banking channels,” said Alvin Kan, chief operating officer of Bitget Wallet. “By embedding payment rails directly into self-custodial wallets, we offer users in emerging markets a direct path into the global financial system.”
By providing dedicated recipient details directly on US and European networks, users enjoy lower transaction costs to as little as $2.00 per $500 transfer (a ~0.4% fee). This direct-to-wallet routing bypasses intermediary fees and delays, ensuring cross-border salary earners, freelancers, and families retain significantly more of their funds. It also offers a direct bank transfer path into stablecoins without requiring centralized exchanges or third-party crypto onramps.
“Opening a dollar or euro account has traditionally been out of reach for many users in these regions,” said Shah Ramezani, founder and chief executive of Noah. “Through this integration, users gain foreign account access and cross-border settlement while maintaining sole custody of their funds.”
At launch, the service supports incoming transfers, with outbound bank transfers planned in upcoming months. Currently, users can spend funds via the Bitget Wallet Card or QR payments, transfer money globally, or allocate funds to earning products, crypto, and tokenized real-world assets.
In South Africa, remote workers on international payrolls can receive salary payments directly into their wallet via provided USD or EUR account details. Funds can then be spent locally using the Bitget Wallet Card. In Morocco, the euro account integrates with the SEPA network, allowing contractors, freelancers, and families to receive payments or remittances directly from clients and relatives across the European Union.
In Nigeria, freelancers can issue invoices containing dedicated US and EU account details, receiving payments via domestic transfer methods like ACH, Fedwire, and SEPA.
Virtual Account integrates into Bitget Wallet's Onchain Payments Matrix, joining its existing card, QR payment, and transfer services. User assets are supported by a $300 million protection fund.
Bitget Wallet bypasses foreign address barriers with Free USD and EUR Accounts in users' names