Bitcoin as we know is a decentralized digital currency that can be used by anyone anywhere in the world. Bitcoin transactions happens over Bitcoin network or Blockchain network which acts as a ledger for these transactions. Information about all transactions are stored on the Blockchain and it can be accessed by anyone using wallet id or hashkey. Even though information about transactions and wallet balance can be accessed over the Blockchain, it is hard but not impossible to find the identity of the person associated with the wallet.
Meaning, bitcoin transactions are pseudonymous, not anonymous as some people think. As most of the transactions are stored on the Blockchain, it is the one stop shop to access information provided the person looking for information is in possession of all the required information. In addition, bitcoin transactions are conventionally carried out over the internet, so in order to pay for something, it is necessary to be connected to a network. Maybe not anymore… Thanks to OffCoin.
OffCoin, previously known as OtherCoin is a bitcoin payment system that works without internet connection. The system uses tamper-resistant smartcard in MicroSD form factor. These small MicroSDs can be used to securely generate, store, transmit and delete Bitcoin private keys, in turn facilitating bitcoin transactions.
The OffCoin project has been taken up by Netopia mobilPay, a Romania based mobile payments provider. OffCoin will enable bitcoin transactions over NFC, Bluetooth, QR Codes or any of the combinations without having to go through Blockchain or paying fees for transactions.
Netopia has been invested in multiple bitcoin related projects lately, it includes OffCoin and the recently launched Bitcoin exchange product called BTKO.in. The company is confident about reaching out to more people as it has over 24 million customers and connections with big telecom players like Vodafone and T-Mobile.