Following its official launch, Mantle’s UR joins Ether.fi Cash as a front-runner in the “Defibank” category—blockchain-native financial services that merge traditional banking convenience with web3’s core principles of efficiency and user control. Unlike existing neobanks like Revolut, these platforms leverage blockchain as the “Internet for money,” redefining how value is stored, transferred, and settled. This report analyzes their live core functions, contrasts them with Revolut, unpacks traditional banking’s essential roles, and explores how blockchain is disrupting centralized settlement layers (e.g., Visa, Mastercard) to enable real-time, trustless transactions. With UR now operational and Ether.fi Cash gaining traction, both signal a definitive shift from siloed legacy finance to unified, on-chain infrastructure.
