Bitlocus, a fintech firm that offers an avenue for fiat users to interact with decentralized finance (DeFi) protocols, has launched a crypto-friendly Visa debit card in partnership with crypto banking as a service platform Striga. This card will allow users to use their crypto to buy goods and services at any store that accepts Visa cards.
According to a press release, the card users will be able to spend their digital assets on POS (Point of Sale) devices, withdraw cash from ATMs, or make online purchases. Bitlocus estimates that more than 70 million merchant locations across the globe accept Visa cards.
To ensure businesses benefit whenever users pay for goods or services through the Bitlocus card, the company will allow merchants to make payments with their tokens listed on the Bitlocus exchange. Apart from this, business clients will have an opportunity to have their brand added to the card.
The cards will be available in physical and virtual forms. Bitlocus said it would announce the registration to the waiting list soon.
Both companies believe this partnership will be fruitful
Bitlocus CEO Andrius Normantas pointed out that,
“The card is a natural addition to the portfolio of other Bitlocus products. Digital currencies and the crypto ecosystem in general are gaining momentum, and we want our clients to benefit from this shift as much as possible.”
Bernado Magnani, Striga’s CEO, said this partnership is critical in the evolution of Striga as a company.
He added,
“We are honored to have been selected by Bitlocus to power their ambitious crypto-enabled card program and excited to kick-off this new stage in our partnership.”
Visa crypto-linked cards continue
This news comes as Visa crypto-linked cards continue gaining popularity. In the first half of 2021, the company announced that transactions through its crypto cards exceeded $1 billion in the first half of 2021. This growth continued into this year, with the financial services giant saying the transaction volume of crypto-linked cards surpassed $2.5 billion in Q1 2022.
At the time, Visa CFO Vasant Prabhu said,
“To us, this signals that consumers see utility in having a Visa card linked to an account at a crypto platform. There’s value in being able to access that liquidity, to fund purchases and manage expenses, and to do so instantly and seamlessly.”
He added that Visa would continue leaning into crypto. According to him, Visa’s strategy involves being a key partner in providing the connectivity, scale, consumer value proposition, and security that the crypto space needs to continue growing its offerings.
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