Crypto’s next growth phase will be driven by utility, not speculation

The future of cryptocurrency might be more about the number of times people use cryptocurrencies in everyday transactions than it is about trading.

One area where that change is beginning to become apparent is travel. Flights are international purchases, often involving different currencies and relatively high transaction values, making payment flexibility particularly relevant to travellers.

Laters.com, a Singapore-based payments-first online travel agency formerly known as Fly Fairly, is using this environment to bring digital assets into everyday travel payments. The company sells flights from more than 650 airlines and offers more than 100 payment methods, including stablecoins and more than 70 other cryptocurrencies.

Laters.com says customers can use digital assets to pay for flights at checkout in the same way they would use other payment methods. The company also reports that its cryptocurrency customers spend more than twice as much as its average customer, with those bookings typically involving long-haul travel and higher cabin classes.

The figures are based on Laters.com’s own transaction data, but they point to a broader question facing the digital-asset industry: what happens when cryptocurrency moves beyond being something people hold or trade and becomes another way to purchase a real-world service?

That question was also part of the rationale behind XBO Ventures’ investment in Laters.com. The investment arm of XBO.com led the company’s US$1.5 million seed round announced in September 2026. The funding will support brand growth, expansion of the core business, and new products and verticals.

“We back companies that turn digital assets into something people actually spend,” said Dor Maman, Co-Founder and CFO of global digital-asset platform XBO.com, in connection with the investment. “Laters.com has done that at one of the sharpest points of friction there is: paying for a flight.”

Digital assets aren’t easy. There are lots of considerations to keep in mind, like volatility, regulation, security, and consumer protection, and cryptocurrencies are not set to replace all of the current methods of payment.

However, their possible benefit is to provide consumers with an alternative where it is feasible.

Travel provides a straightforward example because customers already cross borders and encounter different payment systems. If digital assets can be integrated into that experience without adding unnecessary complexity, their value becomes easier to understand outside the context of financial markets.

For the wider crypto industry, this represents a change in emphasis. Adoption does not necessarily have to mean replacing traditional finance. It can also mean becoming part of the everyday payment choices consumers already make.

Laters.com’s model and XBO Ventures’ backing of the company highlight the transition from digital assets as financial instruments toward digital assets as usable financial infrastructure.