Spain’s Crypto Revolution Accelerates as Venga Rolls Out Spanish & Catalan Support
Barcelona-based fintech Venga just bulldozed another language barrier in crypto adoption—now serving Spain’s 47 million native speakers in their mother tongues.
No more Google Translate fails for Catalan grandmas buying Bitcoin.
Localization play or growth hack? Either way, it’s a slick move as Spain’s crypto economy heats up—just don’t ask about their tax reporting UI.
Funny how ‘decentralized’ ecosystems still need regional compliance teams…
A Missed Opportunity, Until Now
As things stand, Catalan is spoken by around ten million people, not just in Catalonia, but across parts of Valencia, the Balearic Islands, Andorra, and even southern France. Yet, most crypto apps have long ignored it even though there has been no dearth of market interest.
According to industry estimates, nearly one in five Catalans have interacted with crypto in some way, a level of engagement that actually rivals or exceeds many European regions. On the subject, Raul Arribas, Venga’s Chief Technology Officer, opined:
“As a Catalan myself, I’m very proud of finally providing a top crypto app in our language, so we can navigate crypto in the same language we use with our children and loved ones.”
In building out support for Catalan, Venga relied not on outsourced translators, but on its own team, a third of which is from the region and speaks the language. The result is more than just a localized UI but an app that reflects how people in the region actually talk about money, risk, trust, and opportunity.
But this isn't just about Catalonia. By launching in Spanish as well, Venga is aiming at a much broader audience, i.e. the entire Spanish-speaking crypto market, both domestically and eventually abroad. The team sees this dual-language expansion as the first step toward a broader ‘hyper-localization’ strategy, starting with Spain but expanding as demand grows.
Forging a Different Path for Itself
Venga’s launch doesn’t come at a random moment as over the last couple of years, the company had quietly registered with the Bank of Spain and Poland’s Ministry of Finance as a VIRTUAL Asset Service Provider (VASP). Its timing coincides with the implementation of the EU’s MiCA regulatory framework, which sets new standards for crypto services across the bloc.
While most startups are bracing for MiCA compliance, Venga seems to have leaned in early by filing a pre-application in Spain well before the new rules came into force, part of what Stroev calls a ‘compliance-first’ approach. All of this was done because banks in Spain have historically been wary of anyone touching crypto, sometimes flagging accounts, restricting transfers, and even freezing cards.
Venga, by contrast offers an app outlay that is designed to make onboarding as painless as possible, including euro transfers through local banking rails, named IBAN accounts, and live support in multiple languages.
What Comes Next?
With support for Spanish and Catalan now live, Venga is seemingly looking to tap into the region’s developer communities, crypto events, and educational initiatives. In this regard, the company is expected to explore partnerships with local organizations to co-create content and onboarding experiences, not just to trade tokens, but to understand them.
As of today’s launch, the Venga app (now trilingual) is available for download on iOS and Android devices. Users in Spain and across Europe can switch the interface to Catalan or Spanish and begin exploring features like crypto swapping, digital asset wallets, and yield earning programs with immediate effect.
Disclaimer: This article is provided for informational purposes only. It is not offered or intended to be used as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice.
