Cashing out or paying for goods and services with your crypto is now a lot easier as the major exchanges have partnered with payment giants (MasterCard or Visa) to provide you with crypto debit and credit card cards.
These cards will enable you to shop at millions of online and offline stores worldwide using your balances on the exchanges.
The cool thing about these debit cards is that they come with zero administrative, processing or foreign exchange fees and some even give you cashback in crypto whenever you shop with them.
Furthermore, you get to hold and exchange your crypto only at the point of purchase and payment.
So, you never have to sell or pre-convert your crypto to fiat before spending with them.
The exchanges will automatically convert just the appropriate amount of the coins in your account to fiat to settle your purchases.
Top 5 crypto debit or credit cards
Let’s take a look at each of them, their differences, and what makes them unique so that you can decide which one is most suitable for you.
1. Binance debit card
Binance is the world’s largest crypto exchange by every metric such as trading volume, number of users, liquidity, available coins and trading pairs, etc.
It is secure and offers the lowest slippage, better price discovery, faster trades, and a host of innovative crypto trading and investment products or features.
The exchange first announced the launch of its crypto debit card in Europe on July 14, 2020. Since then, support for several new cryptocurrencies and countries has been added.
The Binance Card currently enables you to convert and spend your BNB, BUSD, USDT, BTC, SXP, ETH, EUR, ADA, DOT, XRP, AVAX, SHIB, LAZIO, PORTO, SANTOS from your Binance account.
Every time your shop with your Binance Card, you get up to 8% cashback in BNB based on your monthly transaction amount and monthly average BNB holding.
The more transactions you make and the bigger your BNB you hold on Binance, the higher your cashback percentage.
To get the card, go to the Binance Card page and click on Register Interest to apply for the card as shown below.
You need to be logged in to your Binance account before applying for the card, and you must be from a supported country below.
Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Republic of Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden.
2. FTX debit card
FTX is one of the most liquid and advanced cryptocurrency exchanges owned by ‘the most influential man in crypto’, Sam Bankman-Fried.
The exchange provides you with innovative trading products such as derivatives, options, volatility products and leveraged tokens.
FTX first launched its crypto debit card in partnership with Visa in January 2022 for customers in the US only.
On October 7, 20222the exchange announced it will be expanding its partnership with Visa to extend the card to additional 40 countries. Allowing you to spend your crypto at millions of merchants worldwide.
The card will initially be rolled out to FTX customers in Latin America, Europe, and Asia, but you can apply for it right now and get notified via email when it becomes available in your own country or region.
To apply, go to the FTX card page and click Join the waitlist as shown in the above screenshot.
Everywhere Visa is accepted, you will be able to pay with your FTX card, thus providing flexibility and ease of use to the way you use and spend your crypto.
Unlike the Binance Card, the FTX card does not have a cashback program but it comes with zero administrative or processing fees.
Furthermore, your cryptos are only converted and spent at the exact point of sale. So, you always have your money in crypto and can continue to HODL your unspent balances.
3. Gemini credit card
Gemini is a US-based cryptocurrency exchange that’s also available in dozens of other countries globally.
Gemini launched its crypto credit card in partnership with MasterCard in early 2022. The card allows you to shop everywhere that MasterCard is accepted and get instant cashback in over 60 cryptos credited to your Gemini account.
The card gives you up to 3% cash back on dining, 2% on groceries, and 1% on all other purchases, credited into your Gemini account the instant the transactions take place.
Interestingly, you can choose what cryptocurrency you receive the cashback in from the over 60 different coins they support.
Thus, with the instant cash-back rewards in crypto, many people are using the Gemini credit card to passively accumulate their favourite cryptocurrencies.
Other benefits of the Gemini Credit Card are that:
- it has zero annual fees, foreign exchange, or exchange fees,
- you can choose between 3 colours (black, silver or rose),
- has all the benefits and utility of a MasterCard,
- after approval of the digital card, you get immediate access and use of the card.
However, there’re a few shortcomings with the card you must be aware of:
- The card is currently only available to US customers of Gemini only. So, if you’re not from the US, you can’t get and enjoy the benefits of the card yet.
- You should pay off your card to avoid paying high-interest rates and other fees that might offset whatever cashback rewards you’ve earned for using the card.
- The Gemini card is a “credit card”, as such Gemini will conduct a credit background check and report any delinquent payments which may affect your credit score.
To get the Gemini credit card, signup for a Gemini account and go to the card page to apply for it.
4. Nexo debit card
Nexo is the leading cryptocurrency lending and borrowing platform that allows you to borrow fiat or crypto against your collateral.
The Nexo card is mostly a debit card because it allows you to take and spend crypto loans backed by your crypto collateral on the platform.
You’re simply taking a loan on your crypto assets, but instead of withdrawing it to your bank or wallet, you can spend it directly via the Nexo card, powered by Visa.
The card allows you to spend up to 90% of your collateral on the platform and get up to 2% cashback in NEXO tokens or 0.5% in Bitcoin (BTC).
Unlike a credit card, there are no minimum monthly repayments with your Nexo card, but you must ensure to maintain a required loan-to-value (LTV) ratio.
That means, your total loan amount must not go above 90% of your collateral, otherwise, your collateral will be liquidated or sold to pay off your loan.
However, because the value of crypto assets fluctuates, you need to keep an eye on your LTV and repay the loan or top-up your collateral whenever the value goes down and your risk liquidation.
One of the cool benefits of using the Nexo card is that it allows you to spend your crypto without selling them, thus avoiding a taxable event. Because you don’t pay tax on loans.
Furthermore, there’re no monthly, annual, or inactivity fees to worry about with your Nexo card.
The only potential limitation is that there’s an interest rate on your loans starting from 0% to a maximum of 13.9% APR
The card is accepted by over 90 million merchants worldwide, allowing you to spend in different countries you travel to with their local currency, all while earning rewards.
Finally, the card can be easily managed from the comfort of your Nexo App which allows you to freeze your card, change the PIN, and track transactions with just a few taps.
To get the Nexo Card, first, you need to register a Nexo account if you don’t already have one. And you must be from or a resident of the European Economic Area (EEA).
You can have a virtual card which requires a portfolio balance of at least $50 and a physical card which requires you to maintain a portfolio balance of $500 or more.
Click here to learn how to order both the Nexo virtual and physical cards.
5. Coinbase debit card
Coinbase is a US-based cryptocurrency exchange that’s also available in over 100 countries across 5 continents.
They’re probably the most regulated crypto exchange in the world and claim to be the easiest place to buy and sell cryptocurrency.
Coinbase offers its customers a Visa-powered debit card which allows you to spend your crypto balances on Coinbase at over 40 million merchants worldwide at zero fees.
However, the card is currently only available for Coinbase customers in the US, EU, and UK.
When you spend with it, you earn cashback in 8 different cryptocurrencies such as BTC, DAI, AMP, ALGO, XLM, etc, up to 4% of your total spend depending on the coin.
Thus, helping you to passively stack crypto rewards.
However, the cashback reward percentage for each coin is not fixed.
They change it regularly based on what they think is sustainable for them, so you need to check out what the current cashback reward percentage is from their app.
To apply for the Coinbase Card, first, you need to signup for a Coinbase account, if you don’t already have one, then visit the card page and click Get Started to apply.
Important facts about crypto debit and credit cards
Here’re some interesting facts you need to know about these crypto cards:
- You can use them to make purchases anywhere the Visa® or MasterCard® debit and credit cards are accepted worldwide.
- There are generally no tax implications when you spend the local fiat currency or stablecoin via the card. But spending any other crypto involves selling or conversions, and this is a taxable event.
- Some, like the Coinbase Card for the EU and UK, may charge you an issuance fee for the physical card. Make sure to find out the current terms of issuance of any card you apply for.
- All the cards have no annual (maintenance) or foreign currency conversion fees. This is another area where they beat traditional bank cards.
- Most of them offer cashback paid in crypto. Thus offering you a way to earn crypto for free.
- The exchanges or platforms discussed in this article are reasonably legit and credible. But of course, this is not an endorsement or financial advice. I am not your financial advisor.
- There are no complicated structures or hidden charges with these platforms and their card. You just need to have enough balance in your account and go spend with your card.
Conclusion
Cryptocurrency exchanges are leading the way in terms of crypto adoption by making it easy for people to use their crypto in the real life.
Many of them have partnered with either Visa or MasterCards to offer their users a crypto debit or credit card that they can use to shop at millions of merchants worldwide at zero fees.
In this post, we have discussed the 5 major exchanges or platforms that offer you a crypto debit or credit card and their unique features.
Now, it’s your turn.
Which other popular exchanges are offering crypto debit or credit cards to their users that you want to be included in this list? Share with us in the comments section below.