Bitsy, a portfolio company of Overstock.com Inc.’s blockchain accelerator Medici Ventures, will launch a beta version of its exchange and wallet service starting Monday.

Pitched as a new app-based platform that creates an easy, secure and user-friendly bridge between bitcoin and the U.S. dollar, Bitsy’s service is focused on giving users direct control over their bitcoin.

“The great promise of the bitcoin white paper was to have legitimate peer-to-peer exchange of value without the need for trusted intermediaries,” Patrick M. Byrne, Overstock.com’s founder and chief executive officer, said in a statement. “Few people understand, however, that with conventional bitcoin wallets, users do not have actual possession or control of the bitcoins they buy: their wallet-provider owns the bitcoin and provides a contractual claim to the consumer, who must then trust that corporation. This defeats the whole purpose of crypto.”

Bitsy wallets are claimed to switch direct possession to users, giving them complete control of their cryptocurrency without the risk of lost keys.

A small cryptocurrency startup with a wallet is not exactly a new idea, but Bitsy is immediately starting with a huge boost. After the beta trial period, the wallet will be integrated into Overstock.com itself in the first half of 2019, giving the startup exposure to potentially hundreds of millions of users.

Starting Monday, users can download the Bitsy app from the Apple App Store or Google Play for free to buy, transfer or hold bitcoins securely.

Bitsy is not Medici Ventures’ only portfolio company in the crypto and blockchain sector. It invested in Caribbean blockchain startup Bitt Inc. in March and the VinX blockchain wine market and supply chain in October 2017.

Image: 159526894@N02/Flickr