New cryptocurrency payments startup Flexa Network Inc. today opened up shop with an app that allows users to use cryptocurrency to make payments in physical retail stores.

The company’s app, SPEDN, allows users to make payments using bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash and Gemini dollar. It’s launching with an impressive array of retail outlets, including Barnes & Noble, Baskin Robbins, Bed Bath & Beyond, Caribou Coffee, Crate and Barrel, Jamba Juice, Lowe’s, Nordstrom, Office Depot, Petco, Regal Cinemas and Amazon.com Inc.’s Whole Foods Market.

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency point-of-sale wallets aren’t new. Various efforts have been made to get retail cryptocurrency payments off the ground. Where Flexa differs is that it pays merchants in dollars, so the retailers don’t need to be involved in cryptocurrency processing at all.

SPEDN generates a QR code that’s scanned by the checkout register to initiate the transaction. The merchant receives an immediate payment in dollars and the cryptocurrency balance of the user is debited.

That’s achieved through the use of FlexaCoin, an intermediary cryptocurrency that sits between merchant and app user. Although taking virtual seconds, FlexaCoin facilitates the transfer of funds even allowing for short delays; the merchant is paid immediately while Flexa uses FlexaCoin as collateral against the transaction.

As The Verge pointed out,  “the network is essentially taking on the risk of not receiving the cryptocurrency from your wallet… but it seems this is what’s needed to make immediate payments.”

The surprisingly strong line up of retailers at launch may also be related to the fees involved. Transaction fees are between 1% and 2% – cheaper than credit cards with the added bonus of overcoming credit card fraud through permissioned transfers.

“This is the first real instance of decentralized global retail payments, with the power to make commerce more efficient and accessible for billions of citizens globally,” Tyler Spalding, co-founder and chief executive officer of Flexa, said in a statement. “The legacy payment systems are complicated and costly. This solution provides a way for cryptocurrencies to solve these problems and allow merchants to conduct inexpensive and fraud-resistant transactions.”

The one surprise in the announcement was the inclusion of Gemini dollar. That comes about through a newly announced partnership between Flexa and cryptocurrency exchange Gemini Trust Co. LLC. That partnership sees Gemini acting as a custodian for Flexa customer assets, adding an additional layer of security.

Flexa has raised $14.1 million through an private initial coin offering. Investors include Pantera Capital, Nima Capital, 1kx and Access Ventures.

Image: Flexa