Crypto debit cards latest?

Daithi40

Morning all, heading on a trip to US and just wondering if anyone is up to date or would like to share their experiences with good crypto debit cards that are in the market?
Following the trip, I'd be interested in using it home and abroad.
Is the Coinbase Card the best available in Ireland? Or is Revolut the way to go - or Xapo - or maybe Wirex ???
Are the rates prohibitive for exchanging into Euro and or Dollar?

Am I right saying that if I used a Wirex for example, I can then add that card to my Curve card and use it that way as well?

All advice appreciated, thanks

Lex Luthor

I've just got the Revolut, havent used it yet abroad but the rates are supposed to be better than average and the app is very easy to use

Daithi40

Lex Luthor wrote: »

I've just got the Revolut, havent used it yet abroad but the rates are supposed to be better than average and the app is very easy to use

Thanks for that - I have looked at Revolut, but afaik it's a closed env for Cryptos? I can buy supported cryptos within the Revolut platform and spend it or send to other Revolut holders, but I can't send it or receive it from an external wallet - I might be misunderstanding it though

What I'd like to do is have a crypto debit card that I can send crypto to, from Kraken for example, and use that crypto for fiat ATM withdrawals at home and abroad or spending (as mastercard/visa debit) if I want - and of course pay in crypto if I want where it is accepted...

banie01

Revolut is an easy means of access to crypto, but it's buy/sell spreads are very wide and unlike many other normal exchange platforms.
There is no real opportunity to swing trade and in reality @3.5% move or greater is needed to break even on a trade.

You also don't have any ability to withdraw or deposit crypto to private/personal addresses, as such you don't hold the keys so it's not your crypto.

Now leaving crypto aside, Revolut is a fantastic tool for FX trading, travel, FX exchange and international transfers.
For Crypto, it offers ease of entry but at a high comparative price.

Coinbase cryptocard.
I have one, but to be quite honest I have yet to use it for any transactions.
Good app, simple and easy.


MCO card,
Registered but never followed thru on my application.

Lex Luthor

Daithi40 wrote: »

Thanks for that - I have looked at Revolut, but afaik it's a closed env for Cryptos? I can buy supported cryptos within the Revolut platform and spend it or send to other Revolut holders, but I can't send it or receive it from an external wallet - I might be misunderstanding it though

What I'd like to do is have a crypto debit card that I can send crypto to, from Kraken for example, and use that crypto for fiat ATM withdrawals at home and abroad or spending (as mastercard/visa debit) if I want - and of course pay in crypto if I want where it is accepted...

Binance are launching one soon

Bob24

banie01 wrote: »

MCO card,
Registered but never followed thru on my application.

I like what crypto.com are doing with an decently integrated and fairly practical ecosystem of everything you need related to crypto (broker, exchange, lending, borrowing, etc) and briefing all of this with fiat currencies and payment services.

The cashback on their cards seems like a nice bonus as well.

They are a bit late with shipping the cards to Europe though, but they have started to send them to the U.K. and said the rest of Europe will follow in the next few weeks.

Daithi40

Update: obviously the trip to NY and Miami ^^ has been cancelled but i did some more research and ended up getting both Wirex and i decided to complete my Revolut application. So now have them both and am happy with the choice. Particilarly like wirex and have seemlessly and easily transferred some ltc from Kraken to the card and then easily changed it to euro. Have also easily and quickly added fiat to wirex by linking bank cards. Will use revolut for fx when needed. Coupled with the Curve card i got in the last year its all quite handy. I cannot add Wirex to Curve, havent tried revolut as have my folks address for card delivery and they are self isolating.

el diablo

Anyone receive their Crypto.com MCO Visa card yet? The Ruby Steel card (50 MCO tokens) is tempting.

Bob24

el diablo wrote: »

Anyone receive their Crypto.com MCO Visa card yet? The Ruby Steel card (50 MCO tokens) is tempting.

The only European country they have started to ship to is the U.K. (very recently).

Other European countries are supposed to be imminent.

el diablo

Anyone have an up to date list of which countries the MCO card is currently available for? Did a search but can't find an updated list.

Bob24

el diablo wrote: »

Anyone have an up to date list of which countries the MCO card is currently available for? Did a search but can't find an updated list.

It says here “Now available in the UK, USA & Singapore”. I think the U.K. is really just starting , the US have been available for a few month, and some Singapore cards have been around for a while and have also in some circumstances been issued to some people in other countries (but with SGD as the base currency).

The CEO has been tweeting about an EU-wide launch for the past few weeks and saying it is imminent and just pending some administrative tasks by Wirecard (he has already pushed his estimate date a few times though). Here is the latest:

https://twitter.com/Kris_HK/status/1256006899813638145

PS: you probably know this already, but you need to stake tokens for 6 months to get the card anyway, so if you want one you might as well get started now.

makeorbrake

Has anyone come across a card that has no atm fees / fx fees (other than the standard visa/mastercard rate)?

Bob24

makeorbrake wrote: »

Has anyone come across a card that has no atm fees / fx fees (other than the standard visa/mastercard rate)?

Crypto.com doesn’t have those fees up to a certain monthly amount, and the amount depends on your card tier (see the different tiers here, the top 2 tiers really require A LOT of their own token and seem like a niche to me: https://crypto.com/en/cards.html).

At least on paper, their cards actually seem pretty good to me.

Lex Luthor

this ties in with another thread on Crypto exchange recommendations

I see that Uphold has a debit card (Mastercard)

I have an account on Uphold setup and its linked to my Brave browser activity
Setup the app last night for Uphold and its so easy to use, bit like Revolut but with the option of being able to send/withdraw crypto from another exchange/cold storage

Need to read up more on how the debit card transactions relate to the varios wallets on the account, I imagine you just fund the EUR wallet from a crypto wallet when you want to use, but this is how it should be going forward, straightforward simple movement of money

Yes there are small fees but a lot less than other fees/tax I wont mention

Bob24

Crypto.com are now shipping their cards to Europe: https://blog.crypto.com/mco-visa-card-now-shipping-in-europe/

Shamo

Bob24 wrote: »

Crypto.com are now shipping their cards to Europe: https://blog.crypto.com/mco-visa-card-now-shipping-in-europe/

Mine is "issued" now, next step should be shipping status over next few days to Ireland hopefully. Two recent things worth mentioning are increased spending limits in EU and topup your MCO card with your debit card directly (with no fees).

Bob24

Shamo wrote: »

Mine is "issued" now, next step should be shipping status over next few days to Ireland hopefully. Two recent things worth mentioning are increased spending limits in EU and topup your MCO card with your debit card directly (with no fees).

Yep same here mine changed from “pending” to “issued” on Monday. I think there is a further status saying “shipped” and from there it is meant arrive within 10 working days.

The also added Apple Pay in the US recently, hopefully coming to Europe soon.

makeorbrake

Crypto Debit Card Review

Daithi40

makeorbrake wrote: »

Crypto Debit Card Review

thanks, pretty good info in that 20 mins - did you get a ruby card?

Bob24

Shamo wrote: »

Mine is "issued" now, next step should be shipping status over next few days to Ireland hopefully. Two recent things worth mentioning are increased spending limits in EU and topup your MCO card with your debit card directly (with no fees).

Have you had any update on your card status from crypto.com? Mine hasn't moved and still says "issued".

Shamo

Bob24 wrote: »

Have you had any update on your card status from crypto.com? Mine hasn't moved and still says "issued".

Nope, still issued. I've been keeping tabs https://www.reddit.com/r/Crypto_com/comments/ghnkf1/eu_status_overview/ and don't think we're too far off shipping status.

Bob24

Shamo wrote: »

Nope, still issued. I've been keeping tabs https://www.reddit.com/r/Crypto_com/comments/ghnkf1/eu_status_overview/ and don't think we're too far off shipping status.

Good link, thanks! I guess the thread mostly has the very keen people positing on it, but the ratio of people mentioning higher tiers cards is larger than I expected!

makeorbrake

Daithi40 wrote: »

thanks, pretty good info in that 20 mins - did you get a ruby card?

I didn't. I'm going to hold off. I thought I'd have to have one - but I'll just cash some crypto into FIAT and load my revolut instead. Will be watching closely though as these products will get more and more competitive as we go along.

Bob24

Shamo wrote: »

Nope, still issued. I've been keeping tabs https://www.reddit.com/r/Crypto_com/comments/ghnkf1/eu_status_overview/ and don't think we're too far off shipping status.

Looks like some people in Ireland have already received it: [url] https://www.reddit.com/r/Crypto_com/comments/gqvxyc/green_card_for_the_green_island_cant_wait_to_try/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x[/url]

Shamo

Bob24 wrote: »

Looks like some people in Ireland have already received it: [url] https://www.reddit.com/r/Crypto_com/comments/gqvxyc/green_card_for_the_green_island_cant_wait_to_try/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x[/url]

Mine went "shipped" this morning anyway.

Bob24

Shamo wrote: »

Mine went "shipped" this morning anyway.

Same here actually.

el diablo

When did you people order the card and when was it "issued" in your accounts?

Bob24

el diablo wrote: »

When did you people order the card and when was it "issued" in your accounts?

I staked the MCOs just over 6 months ago and it moved to issued last week.

el diablo

Bob24 wrote: »

I staked the MCOs just over 6 months ago and it moved to issued last week.

I only staked my (50) MCO a couple of weeks ago. Anyway, keep us updated.

Shamo

Staked about 6 weeks ago. Issued early last week.

el diablo

Mine has also been shipped but I'm out of the country for the foreseeable future. Hopefully I'm not personally required to sign for delivery of the card.

Bob24

el diablo wrote: »

Mine has also been shipped but I'm out of the country for the foreseeable future. Hopefully I'm not personally required to sign for delivery of the card.

I suspect they are sending it using non-registered regular post. Will let you know when it arrives.

Bob24

Card arrived today. It was regular mail with no signature required, posted from the UK.

Even though you know it is metal, it does feel heavy when you first grab it :-)

unkel

What's the USP of this card? Compared to say Revolut? Apart from the cash back and the Spotify / Netflix free subscriptions on the higher tier cards. Looks to me like another free N26 or Revolut card (have both already) or are there specific crypto related benefits to this card?

Bob24

Looking at the first tier requiring MCO staking, I think the 2% cashback and full Spotify cashback is what is appealing to some people (besides that the card does what Revolut does in terms of interbank exchange rates).

But at the end the day besides those goodies I think the long term strong incentive is the fact that it is part of a broader ecosystem which crypto.com has even building (crypto loans, crypto deposits with decent interests, exchange, etc). Some people might not like it because it is bringing a lot of centralisation back into crypto, but it is convenient and there are good synergies between the different products. For exemple you can deposit bitcoins, get 6% annualised rate on then, and use those interests to instantly top-up the card and make purchases in fiat currencies with very little fees.

unkel

Bob24 wrote: »

you can deposit bitcoins, get 6% annualised rate on then

That sounds extremely risky to me, for very little reward. I'd rather keep control of my coins myself (and make them work for me in other ways, without risk, like staking or master noding), or create coins through mining, using hardware that can be sold on as computer parts, again with very little risk. Several major crypto exchanges have had major hacks where lots of coins were taken. Never mind handing your coins over to a company that is probably even more likely to go belly up.

And I already have free unlimited Spotify for life, it came with my second hand car

Bob24

unkel wrote: »

That sounds extremely risky to me, for very little reward. I'd rather keep control of my coins myself (and make them work for me in other ways, without risk, like staking or master noding), or create coins through mining, using hardware that can be sold on as computer parts, again with very little risk.

Yes some people will reject the idea of bringing centralisation back into crypto and of handing their keys to a third party, and I completely understand that (my personal view would be to that a good compromise to get some reward while limiting the risk would be to self-store half of one's crypto holdings and spread the rest across 2 or 3 different services which generate yield - so that even if one of those services goes under the impact is limited).

Having said that I don't think it is fair to say 6% yield on Bitcoin (and 12% on stablecoins) is very little in comparison to the risk, knowing that we live in a world of zero to negative interest rates. I myself think it is rather high and would question how sustainable it is.

If you compare it to what you can get elsewhere, interest rates for high yield debt (polite word for junk debt) in the eurozone can be lower and for a very high risk profile (I believe BB rated bonds which are usually considered the beginning of the junk category will yield around 4%).

unkel

I'd say to invest in an index linked fund of shares in blue chip companies would have an expected gain of more than 6% for a lower risk. No way would I hand over my crypto to a newcomer company like that with a substantial risk of losing all of it. I'd rather even stick it into a pension fund. With substantially higher return (after tax) and substantially lower risk. Crypto is risky at the best of times, and that's even without handing your coins over

Bob24

unkel wrote: »

I'd say to invest in an index linked fund of shares in blue chip companies would have an expected gain of more than 6% for a lower risk.

Not trying to argue either way and people will make their own choice, but for clarity if the 6% expected return of an ETF is to be compared with the 6% interest on bitcoin, the following should be taking into account: with the bitcoin deposit you are double-dipping, both getting the 6% interest rate and betting on long term price appreciation of bitcoin so the overall return you are expecting is significantly above 6%.

The 6% ETF envisioned gains alone should rather be compared with the 12% rate they pay on USD stable coins.

unkel

Betting. And hoping the company you handed your coins over to won't go under or won't give them back to you. Double whammy risk

For the lousy 6% promised reward, I wouldn't gamble it. But as you say, each to their own!

Shamo

Don't get mixed up between the card and the app. The app has many features like earning deposit interest on various coins, taking out a loan using crypto, exchange fiat <> crypto and crypto <> crypto, actually being able to deposit and withdraw crypto unlike Revolut, buying gift cards to spend in shops with cashback rewards etc. If you want more reward for the risk, deposit/buy CRO and earn 18% APR.

The card offers little benefits if you can't stake MCO to get a higher tier so it's really for people that have MCO or can afford the stake without putting a high % of their portfolio in.

Worth reading https://crypto.com/en/security.html

makeorbrake

There are many jurisdictions where it's still a difficulty to convert crypto back to fiat funds in a bank account. This type of product cuts out the bank whilst still making crypto spendable (indirectly) via visa (whilst we await further improvements to crypto and its network from a payments point of view).

el diablo

Bob24 wrote: »

Card arrived today. It was regular mail with no signature required, posted from the UK.

Even though you know it is metal, it does feel heavy when you first grab it :-)

Also received my card today apparently.

drunkmonkey

I've been using a wirex card the last couple of weeks, getting a bit of Bitcoin back with every tap, easily more than the monthly standing charge.
Would it be madness to buy the 500,000 .wxt token just so I could get 1.5% crypto back. I think it's about 4k.

banie01

I'd signed up for the MCO card ages ago and completely forgot about it.

The Spotify offer for staking 50, and the 2% cashback will see move a lot of my renewals and subs there from Revolut.

Revolut's actions during the week, with giving some support staff the choice to resign or be fired leaves quite a poor taste tbh.

So if I can find a card/app that offers similar benefits with no fee, I'm moving.

unkel

banie01 wrote: »

Revolut's actions during the week, with giving some support staff the choice to resign or be fired leaves quite a poor taste tbh.

It's a reality of business tbh. Just heard about the redundancies and wage cuts in the company I work for myself. Both pretty severe.

banie01

unkel wrote: »

It's a reality of business tbh. Just heard about the redundancies and wage cuts in the company I work for myself. Both pretty severe.

It certainly is, but there is quite a difference between a planned exit and a figurative gun to the head.

Threatening staff with resignation and a token severance, or dismissal is incredibly poor management.

They are a disruptor in a competitive industry, they will take knocks however, if that's how they approach headcount management and it's presentation?
I'd honestly wonder what else they cut corners and spin.

They had announced redundancies, filled them and then initiated a further headcount cut under the guise of natural wastage.

It's a sneaky and outright disrespectful way to treat staff.

Bob24

unkel wrote: »

It's a reality of business tbh. Just heard about the redundancies and wage cuts in the company I work for myself. Both pretty severe.

Laying off staff because business is poor is one thing and I agree with you this is unavoidable in some companies given the economic circumstances.

But if what is reported here (and elsewhere) is correct, what happened is quite different from "regular" lay-offs: out of nowhere staff members were given 30 minutes to decide between being terminated for supposed underperformance or accepting to sign a document relieving Revolut from their legal obligations in terms of statutory severance packages.

A large number of people being presented with that choice just as the company needs to cut costs doesn't make it look like underperformance is the actual reason. Genuinely terminating someone for underperformance should be an individual process for each under-performer, not something coming out of nowhere for a large batch of employees all at the same time.

banie01

On the topic of Crypto cards and their benefits.

Is anyone using CryptoEarn?
Have some stuff I'm hodling and the idea of a return over and above the principle is quite attractive IMO.

I stuck 50 MCO into the account to get the 2% CB and free Spotify.
Will likely start using it as my main card when it gets here.

el diablo

banie01 wrote: »

On the topic of Crypto cards and their benefits.

Is anyone using CryptoEarn?
Have some stuff I'm hodling and the idea of a return over and above the principle is quite attractive IMO.

I stuck 50 MCO into the account to get the 2% CB and free Spotify.
Will likely start using it as my main card when it gets here.

I haven't started using CryptoEarn yet but I'm considering it. I already have accounts at Celsius and BlockFi though so I'm not sure if I'm comfortable staking any more of my crypto. Not my keys, not my crypto and all that :cool:

Bob24

Crypto Earn works as advertised and as said above there is indeed the obvious caveat that you have to accept giving control of your crypto to a third party. The other thing is that to get the best interest rates you have to have a 500 MCO stake and to deposit your other coins for 3 months terms, but doing that I believe you are getting some for the best rates on the market (if not the best - currently 6.5% on bitcoin and 12% on stablecoins).

But I wouldn’t go all in on Crypto Earn (nor any other similar platform) as there always is a small risk. My view is that the right thing to do is to only put a potion of someone’s crypto holdings on this type of platform, and to split that amount at leat across 2 different ones to spread the risk. And I’d definitely include Crypto Earn as one of of those platforms.