With a focus on Latin America, Asia and Europe, Visa and global exchange FTX will offer debit cards in 40 countries. It is expected that the cards, which are already available in the United States, will be linked directly to users’ FTX cryptocurrency investment accounts. With this move, customers will be able to spend Crypto without having to move them off an exchange, just as they would do with a bank account, according to Visa’s chief financial officer.
— SBF (@SBF_FTX) January 21, 2022
Sam Bankman-Fried, CEO of FTX, commented on the news, “We’re excited to partner with one of the world’s largest payment networks to give our users the ability to use their crypto to fund purchases at millions of merchants around the globe. This card allows users to make use of their FTX crypto balances 24 hours a day, 365 days a year securely and with no administrative or processing fees.”
Even though values have come down there’s still steady interest in crypto, in a phone interview. We don’t have a position as a company on what the value of cryptocurrency should be, or whether it’s a good thing in the long run — as long as people have things they want to buy, we want to facilitate it.
Visa CFO Vasant Prabhu told CNBC
At Visa, we believe that digital currencies will have a lasting impact on the future of financial services and money movement, We’re excited to partner with leading crypto exchanges like FTX to bring more flexibility and ease-of-use to the way people use their crypto unlocking the ability to use a crypto balance to fund purchases anywhere Visa is accepted.
Cuy Sheffield, Head of Crypto at Visa
The partnership adds to Visa’s more than 70 crypto partnerships. FTX’s competitors Coinbase and Binance have already partnered with the company. Similar moves have been made by rival Mastercard, partnering with Coinbase and Bakkt to offer crypto-related services to banks and merchants. There is speculation that American Express might use stablecoins, which are backed by fiat currencies. Consumers should not expect an AmEx crypto-linked card any time soon, according to the CEO.
Through our partnership with Visa, we are continuing to see further expansion of the connection between digital assets and the global financial ecosystem. With the FTX-linked Visa debit cards, individuals can now tap into their cryptocurrency holdings for everyday spending opportunities.
Adam Jacobs, Global Head of Payments at FTX
The FTX Visa debit card will be linked directly to the holder’s FTX account, enabling them to seamlessly convert and pay for goods and services using their FTX balances. With the FTX Visa debit cards, users can easily make purchases at the 80 million merchant locations worldwide that accept Visa. There will be no administrative or processing fees associated with the use of the FTX Visa debit card by cardholders.
