MercX: Solving Real Life Pains

General Press & News
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MercX: Solving Real Pains.

MercX isn’t just another blockchain project looking to offer a high-yield stablecoin. It’s solving a real, long-standing challenge in the MENA region’s capital markets; where access, liquidity, and investor participation have been limited by outdated systems, high costs, and cumbersome processes.

For two years, MercX has been quietly developing a platform that bridges regulated real-world assets (RWAs); like mutual funds, treasury instruments, and equities nto a compliant digital environment, tailored for Egypt and MENA.

And it’s already proving its product-market fit. We have a list of the region’s top asset managers waiting to be on board. We starting with one with an AUM exceeding $1 billion waiting to onboard their funds to MercX. In fact, many are competing to be first in line. The enthusiasm has been so strong we had to limit onboarding, focusing first on a select few funds to ensure exceptional service delivery in year one.

Lower Redemption Pressures with Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Liquidity

  • On average, our fund partners face 10% monthly turnover across their portfolios—about $100 million redeemed and $120-130 million subscribed each month(Net Asset Flow and we are not on boarding all their funds).
  • Implementing P2P secondary trading will reduce redemption pressure, improving liquidity management. Instead of forced liquidations, fund managers can maintain a focused investment strategy.
  • Reduced redemptions lower the need for liquidity buffers, increasing yield and optimizing the portfolio structure.

Reduced Fund Administration Costs

  • Fund managers in Egypt currently pay between one-third to half of their management fees to banks, brokers, and distribution channels to handle physical registration and subscriptions.
  • MercX replaces these legacy intermediaries with an end-to-end digital platform. Our KYC/KYB process is audited and approved by Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA), and our payment rails are cleared by an FRA-approved and Central Bank of Egypt-regulated payment provider.

Unlocking New Revenue via Borrowing Against Fund Shares

  • Traditionally, fund investors in Egypt could not borrow against their holdings in money market funds, private equity, or equities. MercX changes that.
  • We enable automated borrowing and lending, where institutional liquidity providers, including our partner funds participate in providing collateralized loans to investors.
  • This creates a new lending market on top of existing fund assets, increasing AUM stickiness while delivering more capital efficiency to both investors and managers.

Our Product Focus

In the first year, MercX is offering:

  • FXMX: A tokenized Fixed Income Fund backed by Egypt’s top-performing money market funds and T-bills in USD, EGP, and EUR denominations.
  • EX30: A private equity index token tracking the 30 most liquid company shares in the Egyptian market.
  • Minimum buy-in starts at $100, lowering barriers for individual investors typically locked out of these institutional-grade products. MercX subsidizes entry to democratize access for a new generation of savers and investors.

After 6-8 months of launch, we will expand offerings based on input from our asset managers. Our pipeline includes sukuks, sovereign debt, infrastructure bonds, and global fixed income strategies.

Backed by Mercatura Forum, Egypt’s Leading Web3 Venture Studio

Mercatura Forum is the engine behind MercX. As Egypt’s only Web3-focused fund and venture studio, Mercatura has been committed to building long-term, compliant Web3 infrastructure on the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP).

  • Our management team articulated this vision in 2024 at the Four Seasons Cairo, during our sponsored gathering of the Egyptian Private Equity and Venture Capital Association (EPEAV).
  • Later that year ICP Hub Dubai was invited to join us at Cairo Blockchain Week and met the regulatory leadership in the HQ as well as the leadership of the Egyptian exchange.
  • A year prior, we engaged with ICP’s leadership in Zug. We were invited to web3 fest by ICP Hub Dubai; Inspired by their long-term commitment to on-chain scalability and compliance, we went all-in.
  • We recruited a team of top university graduates to train in ICP development, and now they are leading this launch.
  • Our board includes founders who scaled companies to 64 countries, Economic/legal consultants, and a veteran investment banker. Mercatura Forum has invested in MercX since inception and is continually investing in projects built on ICP by the teams it recruits.

MercX’s Unique Value Proposition

We’re not just putting funds on-chain it is transforming the entire asset management experience for the region:

  1. First-Mover Advantage: MercX is the first regulated tokenized asset platform in Egypt and Northern Africa.
  2. Product-Market Fit: $1 billion in AUM from partners waiting to onboardl; so much demand we’ve had to slow them down to ensure quality.
  3. Operational Savings: Fund managers stand to reduce administrative and distribution costs by up to 50% by using MercX instead of traditional channels.
  4. Investor Access: We open institutional-grade funds to retail and Web3 investors, starting at $100.
  5. 24/7 Liquidity & P2P Trading: Investors can trade or redeem their fund shares instantly, reducing redemption friction and improving fund performance.
  6. New Lending Markets: Investors can borrow against their holdings, and liquidity providers (including the funds themselves) can earn returns by supporting lending.
  7. Transparent, Fully Digital KYC & KYB: Our onboarding is frictionless, compliant, and ready for scale.

We will regularly update this post and you can reach out to the team at:
https://x.com/MercX__
@Mercatura-Developers @jumanaa @nourAhmed123

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No way, this is very exciting, will there be any funds in Egyptian pound. Def would replace my bank certificates with that. Great work MercX team

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One of the funds we are on boarding initially will be in EGP with an interest rate of 27% ApY daily-cumulative. Also redemptions are instant even through the banking system. It’s made for gen z actually

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It seems that both the reply accounts are from “the same team”, like “ask yourself and answer yourself”, please don’t play with the community.

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Hey, Mohamed is actually applying to join Mercatura’s lab, he reached out through the forum(we have not checked his cv). And Wael is part of Mercatura Forum and he is supporting a venture by @Mercatura-Developers @jumanaa @nourAhmed123 which is MercX who usually only post technical posts and do not interact

Edit: Mr. Wael felt that expressing his support for one of his investments in the ecosystem could be biased so he is going to leave a space for more constructive feedback :folded_hands:t2: we can’t speak for Mohamed tho as he is not part of our team yet

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So where is your company registration link, who founders and other people involved. Did nourAhmed123 made your website code by asking how to build simple things in this forum?
This all sounds like lot of smoke, You need to provide documents that your company exist and right to provide financial services.

This brings trust even more down, we have heard this from many scammers.

Given the prevalence of online scams in Egypt, as highlighted by warnings from the Egyptian Foreign Affairs Ministry, caution is advised. Potential investors should conduct thorough due diligence, seek independent verification of MercX’s regulatory status and partnerships, and consult with financial advisors before engaging with the platform.

If you going for SNS with missing info, vote will not pass.

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We have no intention whatsoever for an SNS. Our company is actually known in Egypt registered as a share holding company at GAFI. Registration number 10530 00002 15004 share holding company. We can not legally under our regulations to go for one.

Mercatura Forum’s managing partner for web3 ventures LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kareem-younes-b23136ab?utm_source=share&utm_campaign=share_via&utm_content=profile&utm_medium=ios_app

Our sponsorship to educational events along with UNDP: The British University in Egypt (BUE) on Instagram: "The British University in Egypt would like to thank Mercature Forum our Gold Sponsor for Cop28 Simulation for their valuable contribution. Mercatura Forum is a startup and an artists campus that contributed with part of its Innovation and art fund for the #COP28Simulation. @sarah_elkhishin @cop28uaeofficial @undp.egypt @hlcchampions @zayedu @mercaturaforum @mohesregypt @emys.official @europeanuniversityassociation @universitiesuk @ukinegypt @lsbu @manmetuni @qmuni @theloft88_ #cop28simulation #TheBritishUniversityinEgypt #BUE #mohamedloutfi #COP28 #COP27 #Egypt #UNDP #ClimateAction #climatechange #YouthInAction #implementingchange #ecowarriors #TogetherForOurPlanet #zayeduniversity #fromsharmelsheikhtodubai #ROADTOCOP28 #JohnLatham #EhabShalaby #stuartbannerman #PaulJHopkinson"

Mercatura Forum LinkedIn Mercatura Forum | LinkedIn

As mentioned earlier, the lab had a development journey, you can track it on the forums.

MercX itself the startup will not be available for an SNS due to regulatory requirements and we none of our team members will never solicit funds from the community for whatsoever reasons.

The purchase of regulated funds will happen when our first fund manager announces the partnership on their handles and news papers until then and in every post we have stated that we are not selling any tokens.

If you go through our Instagram and LinkedIn page you will see our mandate being explained last year during the annual gathering of the Egyptian Private Equity and Venture Capital association. We have a HQ of 7 floors in the heart of Cairo that we invite you to visit, with the biggest art gallery non profit in Cairo. We also launch semi annual application for web3 startups and robotics hardware startups at pre seed with tickets from 50,000 to 350,000.

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You can also check one of our initiatives
https://www.linkedin.com/company/cairo-blockchain-week/

Where you will see the Egyptian Regulator, the Egyptian stock exchange leadership

You will also see heads of ventures from XDC, Flare Network and ICP hub Dubai, Saed Ereiqat, VCs, LPs and banks

All of whom had met the leadership of the Egyptian regulator and the Egyptian stock exchange in a closed session organized by us, videos are available on Cairo Blockchain Week LinkedIn page.

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You still did not provide your company name, under what you claim you have audited KYC platform and FRA approval. And even than you need to get approval from other countries if you offer services there.

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Mercatura Forum is a startup studio. We are using Vallify and Vlens for KYC-AML and counter terrorism checks. Both companies are approved by the financial regulator and we are using Paymob to onboard( a central bank approved and licensed) . As to approval from other countries? To do what exactly. First of all let me say I’m an international lawyer(with publications in WEF and other tier 1 European journals), my research was GIZ funded. I worked with a lot of central banks in the region(all publicly available).

MercX as a Mercatura Forum venture is offering already regulated institutional grade investment products that are already available for sale worldwide: in order to access them you just need to visit an Egyptian bank to do it: unless you use one of the regulated KYC platforms which limits the process. Obviously any financial institutional complies to FATCA and comparables.

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All companies providing financial services in the EU must obtain an appropriate license. This requirement applies primarily to the following activities: banking, insurance, provision of payment services (including e-money), cryptocurrency business (stock exchange, online currency exchangers), FinTech, etc.

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Agreed, but we are not directly marketing to European investors at the moment. European investors can choose to invest in those funds(they are free to do so), but we have not given out any prospectus or approached any. Just because we are building on a Swiss based chain does not meet we are marketing to Europeans, if that’s the case, each country must have its own chain.

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I know Mercatura Forum because I went to Cairo Blockchain Week to write a paper for my university course. I heard about ICP in a panel and I wanted to learn more….I think what they are offering is awesome because when I liquidate my bank certificate I lost interest….but if I can have interest and borrow for daily expenses that is really cool….I’m not part of the team I’m hoping to join to learn rust and maybe motoko

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Without license they should be geolocked and KYC locked. Are you ignoring KYC and allow everyone for trading?

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No, Europeans can invest on their own accord. We can not pursue them through direct marketing channels, phones calls, geotargeted ads, emails etc. However, if European investors choose to invest it is their choice, we will of course have disclaimers that we are not allowed to market or approach EU investors. Essentially a disclaimer that they are joining out of their own initiative without solicitation. We have to also consider that millions of Egyptians do live abroad and remittances are one of the top in-flows of foreign capital in Egypt, a lot of the fund users will want to transfer savings from different locations(some are also dual national) Hopefully in a year or two the EU license could be obtained.

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No they can not, this is why KYC is for, for not allowing them to use platform.
Risks of Selling Without a License: Heavy fines and legal action, Bank account restrictions, AML/KYC violations.

Business Selling (Broker, Exchange, or OTC Desk)
If you are actively buying and selling crypto for others, running an exchange, or facilitating transactions, most EU countries require registration or a license as a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) under AML (Anti-Money Laundering) laws.

Stablecoins (Additional Regulations)

  • If the stablecoin is considered e-money, issuing or selling it may require an e-money license under the EU’s Electronic Money Directive (EMD2).
  • Under MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation) (effective end of 2024), stablecoin issuers must be authorized and comply with strict reserve requirements.

And than there is Specific Regulations Per Country.

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There must be a confusion here: these are digital twins of fund shares. These are financial instruments. MiCa article 2 mentions that MicA does not apply to financial instruments which are already under MifID, UCITS and AIFMD. Under which we are not allowed to directly market to EU investors, but they may independently join fund shares at their own accord after self certification.

Btw I’m very happy with the engagement and high level of thought, in fact it has inspired me to get a legal paper on it. Thank you for the engagement :folded_hands:t2:

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Learning never stops. Every developer beginner or experienced is constantly learning, solving problems, and contributing new features. That’s exactly why the ICP community exists: to share knowledge, support each other, and even ask simple question in the beginnings . But That doesn’t give anyone the right to discredit the work we’ve done or the progress we’ve made :slightly_smiling_face: We started in Mercatura Forum Lab when there were no ICP developers in Egypt or the MENA region. We started from scratch and since then , we are not anonymous we’ve built a team, driving progress in token whitelisting, ICRC-2, KYC, fund management, and on-chain animations. We actively share knowledge, participate in events, and grow the ICP community

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As we care deeply about community feedback and clarity, we have decided to explain in detail how European investors can invest at their own exclusive initiative. This principle is recognised in EU law and is a consistent feature of multiple European regulatory frameworks.

Beyond regionally enforced AML and sanctions lists, we will not impose additional restrictions or geoblocking measures that would block European or American investors. Instead, we require investors to sign a self-certification confirming they are acting on their own exclusive initiative and that we have not marketed or solicited their investment in any way.

This approach follows well-established legal frameworks under European law.

The Alternative Investment Fund Managers Directive (AIFMD) explicitly recognises reverse solicitation. Recital 70 states:
“This Directive should not affect the situation where the initiative for the investment comes exclusively from the investor.”

Similarly, MiFID II makes the same provision for third-country firms offering investment services to EU clients. Article 42(1) states:

“Where a third-country firm provides investment services or activities at the own exclusive initiative of the client, the requirements of this Title do not apply to the provision of the services or activities by the third-country firm to that person.”

ESMA further clarifies this in its Q&A on AIFMD, Section III, Question 1, where it states:
“The AIFMD does not regulate situations where an investor subscribes to units or shares of an AIF on its own initiative (reverse solicitation).”

The Dutch Supreme Court reaffirmed the validity of reverse solicitation in case ECLI:NL:HR:2015:1806, ruling that:

“An investment service provided at the sole initiative of the client does not constitute marketing within the meaning of the applicable financial supervisory legislation.”

While MiCA (Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation, Regulation (EU) 2023/1114) does not apply to fund units, it continues the same principle. Article 2(4) explicitly excludes financial instruments from MiCA’s scope:

“This Regulation shall not apply to crypto-assets that are financial instruments as defined in point (15) of Article 4(1) of Directive 2014/65/EU.”

However, MiCA confirms reverse solicitation in Article 61(2):

“This Title shall not apply where a third-country firm provides crypto-asset services at the exclusive initiative of the client, irrespective of the type of client.”

This demonstrates a consistent regulatory position across EU financial laws: where an EU investor acts on their own initiative, without solicitation, third-country firms are not deemed to be marketing within the EU and do not require prior authorisation.

It is important to recognise that European investors already allocate capital globally to funds outside the EU, including funds domiciled in jurisdictions such as the Cayman Islands, Singapore, and the United States. This is a well-established and legitimate practice in international financial markets. According to Preqin, European institutional investors account for approximately 20% to 25% of the total capital committed to offshore hedge funds. These allocations are typically made through reverse solicitation frameworks, consistent with the EU’s legal requirements. The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA)

We hope this clarifies things and also if anyone requires any legal-regulatory advice on how to regulatory-structure their projects. We have a legal team as an integral part of our work as a web3 venture studio.

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Your approach hinges on the principle of reverse solicitation, which is indeed recognized under EU financial regulations, including AIFMD, MiFID II, and MiCA. However, while the legal basis you cite is generally correct, there are some key compliance risks and practical concerns you should be aware of:

  1. Strict Interpretation by Regulators
  • EU regulators (such as ESMA and national competent authorities) take a narrow view of reverse solicitation. If there is any indication that a firm encouraged, facilitated, or indirectly marketed to EU investors, regulators may determine that the firm is engaged in unauthorized marketing—even if investors sign a self-certification.
  • Some EU countries (e.g., France and Germany) impose additional restrictions, making it harder to rely on reverse solicitation.
  1. Burden of Proof
  • The burden of proving that an investment was made entirely at the investor’s exclusive initiative rests on the firm. Self-certification alone may not be sufficient if evidence suggests prior engagement, marketing materials, or discussions.
  1. Risks Under MiCA
  • While MiCA allows for reverse solicitation, regulators may scrutinize whether firms truly refrained from solicitation. If there’s any pre-existing business relationship, regular updates, or discussions, regulators might argue that the firm effectively marketed to the investor.
  1. ESMA’s Growing Restrictions
  • ESMA has been actively tightening rules around reverse solicitation, particularly regarding non-EU firms seeking European clients. Even if reverse solicitation is allowed in principle, enforcement trends suggest increased investigations and potential fines for firms seen as exploiting this route.
  1. Potential U.S. Investor Issues
  • Your statement suggests that U.S. investors are also included, but U.S. regulations (SEC, CFTC) have their own strict solicitation rules. Even if reverse solicitation is permitted in the EU, ensuring compliance with U.S. law is equally crucial.

Just do it right and get licenses first.