Sam Kazemian: The Neobank App Store Era Is Here

Sam Kazemian said Frax is turning FraxNet into a neobank app-store platform, which he believes would make it the first neobank with an app store. Users would be able to add separate apps and cards while using a shared FraxNet account for identity and KYC. The aim is to make a financial account a gateway to multiple services rather than a single card or payment product.

Kazemian argued that popular crypto cards are mostly built for retail spending, while businesses need a broader set of stablecoin tools: payments, compliance, invoicing, accounting, and balance management. Some large businesses Frax has worked with want to custody and accept regulated stablecoins directly. Others are interested in using them to extend credit or manage receivables, needs that a consumer-oriented card may not address.

FraxNet is expected to offer distinct apps for functions such as invoicing, cards, and receivables. Kazemian said receivable payments could flow directly to a KYC-verified entity providing credit. He also predicted that businesses may eventually use tokenized securities in these transactions, extending beyond lower-risk regulated digital assets. That possibility depends on how the platform and its counterparties handle the relevant assets and compliance requirements.

The platform’s runtime is intended to connect blockchains with payment rails such as Stripe and compliance flows, rather than depending only on on-chain composability. Users could import and load cards from providers such as EtherFi or Plasma and use on- and off-ramps. Frax also plans an independent app for its own DeFi card, with features such as pre-swipe credit that Kazemian said could be powered by FraxUSD and DeFi mechanisms.

FraxNet could also give users access to services such as Aave, let them deposit and withdraw through a regulated account, and provide a card without repeating KYC within the platform. Frax has direct relationships with tokenized-asset issuers including Superstate, WisdomTree, Securitize, and Midas, but shared KYC is not automatic: each issuer must accept FraxNet’s identity information and permissions. Kazemian said zero-knowledge proofs could help support that process in the future.

Kazemian said Frax is a consortium member of Open USD and can mint and redeem through it at zero basis points. He characterized Open USD as payment-oriented and said that, as he understands it, its revenue comes from payment volume rather than the amount of currency outstanding. He framed Frax’s broader approach as positive-sum, pointing to earlier shared Curve pools and yield opportunities with other participants. He was less certain about how EUSD would fit alongside existing offerings, saying its announcement was early and its economics unclear.