Crypto credit and debit cards offer ways to spend in fiat from your crypto portfolio, meaning it’s not necessary to move and sell crypto in order to make practical use of it. Payment cards also offer spending rewards, and assist in the process of increasing crypto adoption and integration. Many companies now offer crypto payment cards, including major exchanges such as Crypto.com, Coinbase, Bybit, and Gemini.
If you’re invested in crypto or you simply prefer to keep your savings in BTC–a good idea if you want to make sure your wealth doesn’t get eaten into by inflation–then it makes a lot a sense to look at crypto credit cards and similar products. Let’s break down the positives, the categories of product on offer, and run through some of the top cards available right now.
Why Do I Need a Crypto Credit Card?
There may be times when you need to tap into your crypto portfolio to pay for goods and services, which can mean sending coins from a self-custody wallet to an exchange, converting them into fiat, and then withdrawing fiat from the exchange to your bank account. That’s a considerable amount of friction, and also means you can’t instantly access crypto for payments, as you would with a regular fiat bank account.
And that’s where crypto cards–including not only credit cards, but also debit and prepaid cards–come in handy, as they allow you to pay exactly as you would with a regular credit or debit card, except that a crypto card is connected to your crypto holdings. This creates a process which–while you’re not paying directly with crypto in a wallet-to-wallet transaction–reduces friction, and connects crypto with traditional commerce.
Additionally, using a crypto payments card helps to integrate the crypto sector and supports the development of real-world crypto payment solutions, which is good for the crypto industry as a whole as it gains increased adoption. And keep in mind that increased adoption is good for the value of your crypto holdings.
Note that with all crypto payment cards you will need to go through a KYC process to verify your identity as part of the application process, just as you would with a regular credit card.
Prepaid Crypto Cards
First of all, let’s pick up on prepaid crypto cards as these are a straightforward option. Unlike other credit and debit cards, these require you to load up the card with funds from your crypto account first, and then they’re good to go.
Crypto.com
On offer at Crypto.com is a prepaid Visa debit card that you can top up using crypto directly from your crypto wallet, although it can also be topped up using fiat from a regular bank account, or from other credit and debit cards. This makes it a very flexible, all-in-one prepaid card that can be funded simultaneously with both crypto and fiat.
Another notable point about the Crypto.com card is that it comes in six tiers, with access dependent on CRO staking. CRO is the token of the Crypto.com platform, and to get a card in any but the entry tier, you’re required to lock up certain amounts of CRO for a 180 day period, which will require you to purchase CRO first.
From there though, the higher the tier of your card, the more rewards you’ll receive when you use it, in the form of more CRO tokens, while there are other benefits (depending on the card tier) such as airport lounge access and subscription rebates on Spotify and Netflix.
You can also use the card for ATM withdrawals, with limits increasing according to your tier, and if aesthetics are important to you, you’ll be glad to hear that the physical card is metal and the tiers are distinguished by their colors, with levels including Ruby Steel and Obsidian.
You also get a virtual card that can be used before you receive the physical card, meaning you can get started with the Crypto.com card as soon as you pass the approval process.
Finally, if you don’t want to buy and lock up any CRO, you may still be eligible for the entry-level Midnight Blue card. This doesn’t offer any token rewards, but is a solid option if you just want the capability to spend crypto through a Visa card.
Fina
This one is only available in the EU, but is interesting as it integrates with a variety of the top non-custodial crypto wallets, including MetaMask and Phantom, and it works across multiple blockchains, with Ethereum, BSC, Polygon and Avalanche listed as examples on its website.
Once connected, users can top up a Fina card from their crypto wallets and then use it as a standard Visa debit card, earning spending rewards in the FINA token. There are three card tiers–blue, silver and black–with differing spending limits and rewards, and each requires users to stake FINA.
The entry level card, Blue, has a 2,000 EUR monthly spending limit, 1% spending rewards, and requires a $500 FINA stake.
Crypto Credit Cards
Operating like regular credit cards, but borrowing against crypto assets rather than being entirely based in fiat, crypto credit cards let you make use of your crypto stack to enable seamless spending.
Gemini
If you have an account with well-known crypto exchange Gemini, then you can apply for the Gemini crypto credit card. This is a Mastercard credit card offering spending rewards up to 4% (depending on your purchases) that are instantly deposited to your Gemini account in the crypto of your choice from more than fifty supported coins.
The card comes with no annual fees, no foreign transaction fees, and no conversion fees when receiving rewards, and plus, if design is a factor for you, this one looks very stylish, offering a sleek metal card in a choice of three colors: black, silver, or rose.
Venmo
Although payments app Venmo is not a crypto company, this one is on the list because the platform has integrated crypto services allowing users to buy, sell, hold, and transfer crypto, and it offers an automated crypto rewards feature on the Venmo credit card.
In short, when you use a Venmo credit card, there is a Cash Back to Crypto function that users can opt to sign up for, and can then toggle on and off. While it’s activated, this means that when you earn cash-back rewards for spending on your Venmo card, these are automatically converted into the crypto of your choice from among the coins supported by Venmo. However, the Venmo card is for US residents only.
Crypto Debit Cards
There are many crypto debit cards available across a range of platforms, so in brief, here are two prominent choices.
Coinbase
As Coinbase is such a huge crypto platform, this is a go-to product for existing users. It’s a Visa debit card that users connect up with their Coinbase account, and it works by converting crypto assets into fiat currency in real time whenever the card is used to make a purchase.
There are no spending or annual fees–although there are ATM withdrawal fees–and users will earn crypto rewards for using the card. However, this product is currently only available for US-based Coinbase users.
Bybit
Another major crypto exchange, Bybit, offers a Mastercard debit card that links up with user accounts and converts crypto assets for fiat payments. Again, there are rewards on offer, including points redeemable for crypto, and there is a program called Flexible Savings through which users can earn interest on crypto assets.
However, converting crypto with this card carries a fee of 0.9%, while the physical card itself costs $5 (but if you’re ok with a virtual card only, that’s available for free). And as for regional restrictions, the Bybit card is only for residents of Australia and the EEA.
Other Debit Card Options
Away from those two major platforms, there are several other crypto debit cards available, including products from:
- THORwallet
- Holyheld
- Wirex
What’s more, there’s also an incoming new product from Suberra, for which you can now join the waitlist.
Dual Use Crypto Cards
By a dual use crypto card, what’s meant is a crypto-linked payment card that can operate as both a credit or a debit card, depending on individual user needs.
Nexo
The Nexo card key feature is that users can choose to switch between the credit and debit mode. The card is directly connected to user crypto assets on Nexo, which is a crypto lending platform, and in credit mode, assets are used as collateral against which fiat is borrowed to make card payments, at annual borrowing rates ranging from 2.9% to 18.9%.
In debit mode, fiat for payment is drawn directly from user crypto assets, which are converted by Nexo, with users able to select the order in which different crypto assets are utilized.
In debit mode, no fees are charged, while credit mode allows for spending against crypto without selling first. Using the card can earn various kinds of reward, including in NEXO tokens and in BTC, while compound interest can be earned on assets when in debit mode. Note though that the Nexo card is only available in the EEA and the UK.
Overall then, with a wide selection of crypto payment cards available, it’s a case of identifying which one fits most closely with your personal requirements, keeping in mind that regional restrictions vary across products.
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