Damisa — Cross-Border Gas Merchant (Poland → Africa)
Overview
Damisa is a crypto sandwitch fintech.
Their client is operating a cross-border gas trade corridor between Poland and Africa. A Polish gas merchant sells to African buyers. The merchant wants to receive settlement in PLN, while African buyers pay in their local currency (e.g., NGN, KES, GHS, ZAR).
Damisa provides the full infrastructure layer:
- On-ramp — converts African local currency to stablecoin
- Off-ramp — converts stablecoin to PLN for the merchant
- Custodial wallets — managed wallets for both buyers and the merchant
- Escrow — holds stablecoin in escrow until trade conditions are met (e.g., delivery confirmation)
The stablecoin (EBEMT) acts as a settlement rail between two fiat endpoints, with escrow providing trade security.
Actors
| Actor | Role | Regulated? |
|---|---|---|
| African Buyer | End customer purchasing gas. Pays in local currency. Has a Damisa-managed custodial wallet. | KYC'd by Damisa |
| Gas Merchant (Poland) | Polish company selling gas. Wants to receive PLN. Has a Damisa-managed custodial wallet. | KYB'd by Damisa / EMI |
| Damisa (Platform) | Orchestrates the entire trade flow. | Yes — PSP / VASP (jurisdiction-dependent) |
| EMI | Licensed Electronic Money Institution. Mints/burns stablecoins against fiat reserves. | Yes — MiCA Title IV, PSD2 |
| Local Payment Provider | Processes local currency collection in Africa (mobile money, bank transfer, etc.). | Yes — local PSP license |
| Polish PSP | Processes PLN payout to the gas merchant's bank account. | Yes — PSD2 |
Escrow Model — Concerns Damisa Needs to Solve
Physical goods (gas) require funds to be held between payment and delivery. Damisa needs to address:
| Concern | What Damisa needs to figure out |
|---|---|
| When to lock | At what point are funds committed to the trade? Buyer pays first — when does escrow lock? |
| When to release | How does the system know delivery occurred? Physical delivery verification is inherently hard. |
| Who holds during lock | Who controls the escrowed funds? Trust model and custody implications. |
| Disputes | Buyer claims non-delivery or quality issues. Who arbitrates? What evidence? Who bears loss? |
| Stuck funds | Buyer neither confirms nor disputes. When do funds release — to merchant or back to buyer? |
| Visibility | Who can see escrow amounts? Merchant needs visibility; privacy/on-chain exposure is a concern. |
ZKP/EB Components and Features Used
| Component / Feature | Used? | How |
|---|---|---|
| SDK | Yes | To integrate |
| Encrypted Balance | Probably | Basic privacy layer |
| Shielded pools | Probably | For parts of the flow |
| EMT token | Yes | Needs compliant e-money to operate in EU |
| Stealth Addresses | Yes | New addresses for each interaction |
Differences from On-Ramp Use Case
| Dimension | On-Ramp Use Case | Damisa Gas Merchant |
|---|---|---|
| Wallet model | Self-custodial (user holds keys) | Custodial (Damisa holds keys for both parties) |
| Fund flow | Direct: on-ramp → user → merchant | Escrow: on-ramp → buyer wallet → escrow → merchant wallet → off-ramp |
| Settlement | Merchant off-ramps independently | Damisa orchestrates off-ramp on merchant's behalf |
| Currency | Single currency (EUR) | Multi-currency corridor (local African currency → PLN) |
| Privacy goal | Break link between user top-up and merchant payment | Hide trade amounts on-chain; escrow privacy |
| Trade protection | None (instant delivery of digital goods) | Escrow with delivery confirmation and dispute resolution |
| KYC model | On-ramp KYC's the user | Damisa KYC's both buyer and merchant |
Open Questions
| # | Question | Context | Answer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Q1 | Where exactly does privacy plug into this flow? What needs to be private, who should have access? | Encrypted balances hide trade amounts on-chain; escrow amounts not publicly visible — clarify scope and access. | |
| Q2 | What stablecoin denomination is used? EUR? USD? | Affects FX complexity. If EUR, merchant still needs EUR→PLN conversion. If USD, both sides need conversion. | |
| Q3 | Does Damisa custody require TEE / Fireblocks / HSM for key management at scale? | Custodial model at scale needs institutional-grade key management. | |
| Q4 | Do they interact with EMI mint/burn? Or only privacy SDK and on/off ramps? | If EMI only mints EUR EMTs, Damisa handles local currency → EUR on the on-ramp side. | |
| Q5 | Is it true that both buyer and merchant wallets are managed by Damisa (keys held server-side)? | Custodial model claim — verify ownership and key custody. |