2025-11-22 –, World's Fair Stage
Payments are often called the last mile of crypto, the final step that closes the loop and turns on-chain assets into real-world value. Without payments, crypto remains a theory with no connection to everyday life.
But what if payments are also the first mile?
Those of us building in crypto are natives, so we see payments as the end of the journey. But that’s our bias. For billions of people, payments are the gateway in: no one cares about wallets or blockchains until crypto can buy their coffee, pay for their subscriptions, or solve a real-world need.
This is the Gateway Paradox. Payments are both the entry and the exit. They’re how we close the loop for crypto natives, and how we open the door for everyone else.
Tobías Frieder is Head of LATAM at Offramp, where he leads growth and expansion across emerging markets. A behavioral economist with 13 years of experience in growth marketing, he previously founded Web3 ventures and led marketing initiatives at Kraken and Buenbit. Passionate about financial inclusion, crypto adoption, and using behavior design to unlock real economic freedom for the Global South.