In 2025, the global financial landscape finds itself standing at a crossroads of innovation and tradition. The way businesses engage with digital assets and payment hubs is evolving to accommodate the fast-paced disruption brought about by technology and regulatory demands. As someone who has worked across five countries, founded multiple startups, and pioneered the "gamepreneurship" methodology, I, Violetta Bonenkamp, have seen these shifts from many perspectives. When we talk about simplifying infrastructure for a disruptive future, we’re entering a realm that demands not only strategic agility but also a nuanced understanding of technology adoption at scale.
Why Digital Assets and Payment Hubs Matter for Entrepreneurs
The evolving infrastructure for digital payment systems is reshaping how businesses, from solopreneurs to multinational enterprises, operate. Payment hubs simplify complex processes like cross-border transactions, empowering businesses with faster, cheaper, and more transparent financial operations. On the other hand, digital assets, such as cryptocurrencies and tokenized assets, unlock opportunities beyond traditional systems, enabling real-time settlement, reduced transaction fees, and greater control over liquidity.
If you’re a business owner navigating these waters, consider this: According to a McKinsey report on stablecoin infrastructure, the total value of issued stablecoins has grown to $250 billion, doubling over the past 18 months. By 2028, the market is expected to exceed $2 trillion. Such trends highlight that staying on the sidelines is no longer an option, the adoption of modernized payment infrastructure is inevitable for those who aim to stay competitive.
Key Insights and Benefits of Modern Payment Infrastructure
1. Streamlined Cross-Border Transactions
Traditionally, cross-border payments are riddled with delays, high fees, and complexity due to intermediaries. Payment hubs simplify this process by eliminating intermediaries. Platforms like Ripple and Paxos deliver instant transfers and decrease transaction costs by up to 90% in some cases, as highlighted by Volante Technologies.
2. Regulatory Compliance Simplification
One of the largest hurdles for entrepreneurs is navigating compliance, especially across jurisdictions. Modern payment hubs incorporate tools for seamless Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Know Your Customer (KYC), and reporting functionalities.
3. Dynamic Scalability
Cloud-native hubs such as ACI Worldwide’s redefine infrastructure to scale dynamically according to demand. For instance, processing millions of transactions during peak periods no longer requires costly investments for underutilized infrastructure.
4. Liquidity Management Through Digital Assets
Stablecoins, as fiat-backed digital currencies, enable businesses to manage liquidity efficiently, swiftly moving assets across regions without the friction associated with traditional banking. According to McKinsey, stablecoin transaction volume has surpassed $27 trillion annually, proving their importance in modern finance.
How Entrepreneurs Can Adopt Payment Hubs and Digital Assets
Step-by-Step Guide
- Audit Your Current Payment System: Understand the pain points of your existing infrastructure, such as transaction delays, costs, or user experience inefficiencies.
- Research Providers: Look into platforms offering tailored solutions like Ripple’s global payments infrastructure.
- Focus on Compliance: If venturing into digital assets, ensure compliance with evolving regulations like MiCA or U.S. bills affecting cryptocurrencies.
- Integrate Scalable Solutions: Choose cloud-native systems that allow dynamic scalability, reducing long-term costs.
- Monitor and Optimize: Continuously review system efficiency and market trends, fine-tuning your operations.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Overlooking Regulatory Aspects: Mass adoption of digital assets depends heavily on compliance mechanisms. Ignoring AML or KYC tools integrated into payment systems could halt your business overnight.
- Opting for Legacy Systems: Entrepreneurs often underestimate the impact of outdated infrastructure. Don’t settle for systems that can’t scale with emerging demands such as tokenized asset transfers.
- Neglecting Collaboration: Modern payment hubs thrive on interoperability. A siloed approach could leave your business disconnected from potential partners and customers on newer networks.
Deep Insights From My Perspective
After years spent building startups in multidisciplinary fields like deeptech and finance, here's how I view the future of payment hubs and digital assets:
- Interoperability Will Be King: Platforms must collaborate across industries for widespread adoption. This is analogous to bridging TradFi (Traditional Finance) with DeFi (Decentralized Finance).
- Women and Entrepreneurs Play Vital Roles: From my experience with initiatives like Fe/male Switch, inclusive environments foster quicker recognition and adoption of technologies like blockchain and AI.
- Infrastructure Simplification Isn’t Just Convenient, It’s Mission-Critical. In tech-driven fields like CADChain, simplifying operational systems within payments and IP management creates consistency that's measurable.
Statistics and Market Trends
- By 2028, tokenized and blockchain-based payment systems are expected to account for 50% of global financial transactions.
- In 2023, 44% of international workers relied on third-party providers for cross-border payments, a number expected to decrease as direct bank integrations like Thunes become more commonplace.
Conclusion
As entrepreneurs, adapting to disruptive trends in financial infrastructure isn’t just about staying competitive, it’s about setting ourselves up for sustainable growth. Digital assets and payment hubs pave the way for greater financial transparency, reduced costs, and global scalability. By leveraging platforms that combine modern technology with regulatory adherence, business owners can turn complexities into opportunities.
Whether you are building your first startup or scaling an existing operation, the key lies in simplifying your infrastructure without compromising future-proof strategies. Platforms like Ripple, Paxos, and Thunes are not just tools, they’re enablers of what’s next in fintech.
Adoption is no longer an option but a necessity. As someone who has combined fields like neuroscience and finance to create specialized methodologies, trust me when I say: now is the time to act, simplify, and prepare for the exciting disruptive future ahead.
FAQ
1. Why are digital assets important for entrepreneurs?
Digital assets like stablecoins and tokenized assets offer real-time settlement, reduced transaction fees, and improved liquidity management, helping entrepreneurs streamline financial operations. Learn more about McKinsey’s report on stablecoin infrastructure
2. What challenges do payment hubs address in cross-border transactions?
Payment hubs eliminate intermediaries, offering faster transfers and cutting transaction costs by up to 90%. Discover how platforms like Ripple simplify payments
3. How can entrepreneurs ensure their payment systems comply with regulations?
Modern payment hubs integrate tools for AML, KYC, and seamless reporting, offering simplified compliance across jurisdictions. Learn more about compliance tools
4. Why is scalability crucial in modern payment infrastructure?
Cloud-native hubs scale dynamically to handle millions of transactions during peak periods while reducing costs, ensuring efficiency in fluctuating demand scenarios. Explore scalable cloud-native solutions
5. How do stablecoins benefit liquidity management?
Stablecoins, as fiat-backed digital currencies, enable businesses to manage liquidity efficiently, facilitating seamless cross-region asset movements. Check out the importance of stablecoins in modern finance
6. What mistakes should entrepreneurs avoid when adopting new payment systems?
Avoid neglecting regulatory requirements, settling for outdated infrastructure, and opting for siloed systems that hinder collaboration and interoperability. Read insights about regulatory compliance
7. How are digital payment hubs modernizing financial operations?
Payment hubs redefine operations by streamlining processes, enhancing customer experience, and integrating advanced technologies like real-time engines and fraud prevention. Learn about payment hub modernization
8. What platforms are leading the way in payment hubs and digital assets?
Ripple, Paxos, and Thunes are major players transforming payments through instant transfers, infrastructure simplification, and enhanced compliance. Discover Ripple’s global payments infrastructure
9. Why is interoperability vital for payment infrastructure?
Interoperable systems bridge Traditional Finance (TradFi) and Decentralized Finance (DeFi), ensuring seamless connections and collaboration across industries. Check insights on interoperability
10. How significant are stablecoins in financial transactions today?
Stablecoin transaction volume has surpassed $27 trillion annually and is forecasted to exceed $2 trillion by 2028. Explore the growing stablecoin market
About the Author
Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
Violetta Bonenkamp's expertise in CAD sector, IP protection and blockchain
Violetta Bonenkamp is recognized as a multidisciplinary expert with significant achievements in the CAD sector, intellectual property (IP) protection, and blockchain technology.
CAD Sector:
- Violetta is the CEO and co-founder of CADChain, a deep tech startup focused on developing IP management software specifically for CAD (Computer-Aided Design) data. CADChain addresses the lack of industry standards for CAD data protection and sharing, using innovative technology to secure and manage design data.
- She has led the company since its inception in 2018, overseeing R&D, PR, and business development, and driving the creation of products for platforms such as Autodesk Inventor, Blender, and SolidWorks.
- Her leadership has been instrumental in scaling CADChain from a small team to a significant player in the deeptech space, with a diverse, international team.
IP Protection:
- Violetta has built deep expertise in intellectual property, combining academic training with practical startup experience. She has taken specialized courses in IP from institutions like WIPO and the EU IPO.
- She is known for sharing actionable strategies for startup IP protection, leveraging both legal and technological approaches, and has published guides and content on this topic for the entrepreneurial community.
- Her work at CADChain directly addresses the need for robust IP protection in the engineering and design industries, integrating cybersecurity and compliance measures to safeguard digital assets.
Blockchain:
- Violetta’s entry into the blockchain sector began with the founding of CADChain, which uses blockchain as a core technology for securing and managing CAD data.
- She holds several certifications in blockchain and has participated in major hackathons and policy forums, such as the OECD Global Blockchain Policy Forum.
- Her expertise extends to applying blockchain for IP management, ensuring data integrity, traceability, and secure sharing in the CAD industry.
Violetta is a true multiple specialist who has built expertise in Linguistics, Education, Business Management, Blockchain, Entrepreneurship, Intellectual Property, Game Design, AI, SEO, Digital Marketing, cyber security and zero code automations. Her extensive educational journey includes a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Education, an Advanced Master in Linguistics from Belgium (2006-2007), an MBA from Blekinge Institute of Technology in Sweden (2006-2008), and an Erasmus Mundus joint program European Master of Higher Education from universities in Norway, Finland, and Portugal (2009).
She is the founder of Fe/male Switch, a startup game that encourages women to enter STEM fields, and also leads CADChain, and multiple other projects like the Directory of 1,000 Startup Cities with a proprietary MeanCEO Index that ranks cities for female entrepreneurs. Violetta created the "gamepreneurship" methodology, which forms the scientific basis of her startup game. She also builds a lot of SEO tools for startups. Her achievements include being named one of the top 100 women in Europe by EU Startups in 2022 and being nominated for Impact Person of the year at the Dutch Blockchain Week. She is an author with Sifted and a speaker at different Universities. Recently she published a book on Startup Idea Validation the right way: from zero to first customers and beyond, launched a Directory of 1,500+ websites for startups to list themselves in order to gain traction and build backlinks and is building MELA AI to help local restaurants in Malta get more visibility online.
For the past several years Violetta has been living between the Netherlands and Malta, while also regularly traveling to different destinations around the globe, usually due to her entrepreneurial activities. This has led her to start writing about different locations and amenities from the POV of an entrepreneur. Here’s her recent article about the best hotels in Italy to work from.
About the Publication
Fe/male Switch is an innovative startup platform designed to empower women entrepreneurs through an immersive, game-like experience. Founded in 2020 during the pandemic "without any funding and without any code," this non-profit initiative has evolved into a comprehensive educational tool for aspiring female entrepreneurs.The platform was co-founded by Violetta Shishkina-Bonenkamp, who serves as CEO and one of the lead authors of the Startup News branch.
Mission and Purpose
Fe/male Switch Foundation was created to address the gender gap in the tech and entrepreneurship space. The platform aims to skill-up future female tech leaders and empower them to create resilient and innovative tech startups through what they call "gamepreneurship". By putting players in a virtual startup village where they must survive and thrive, the startup game allows women to test their entrepreneurial abilities without financial risk.
Key Features
The platform offers a unique blend of news, resources,learning, networking, and practical application within a supportive, female-focused environment:
- Skill Lab: Micro-modules covering essential startup skills
- Virtual Startup Building: Create or join startups and tackle real-world challenges
- AI Co-founder (PlayPal): Guides users through the startup process
- SANDBOX: A testing environment for idea validation before launch
- Wellness Integration: Virtual activities to balance work and self-care
- Marketplace: Buy or sell expert sessions and tutorials
Impact and Growth
Since its inception, Fe/male Switch has shown impressive growth:
- 5,000+ female entrepreneurs in the community
- 100+ startup tools built
- 5,000+ pieces of articles and news written
- 1,000 unique business ideas for women created
Partnerships
Fe/male Switch has formed strategic partnerships to enhance its offerings. In January 2022, it teamed up with global website builder Tilda to provide free access to website building tools and mentorship services for Fe/male Switch participants.
Recognition
Fe/male Switch has received media attention for its innovative approach to closing the gender gap in tech entrepreneurship. The platform has been featured in various publications highlighting its unique "play to learn and earn" model.
