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Topic: Lack of Bitcoin debit card providers (Read 515 times)

newbie
Activity: 28
Merit: 0
October 30, 2019, 04:39:38 AM
#55
I don't know if you use Bitcoin debit cards but to my opinion there is serious lack of their providers in the market. In one moment we had a flood of such cards that appeared (Xapo, Advcash, Mistertango, Wirex) and when Visa pulled back their services many gave up permanently.
Now I think that only Wirex has a properly working card.

To my opinion there are many users interested in crypto debit cards services but still there are no new providers appearing at the market. What do you think that is reason for that and will that change in the future?

There are probably more debit cards available and Wirex is definitely not the only one, but you're right on the issue.

The problem isn't a lack of bitcoin debit card providers per se, though. There is a lack of anonymous debit cards that could previously be used without any verification, and now, every single provider requires you to provide at least basic ID before you are able to use their services.

There isn't really nothing that could be done though, because this stems from a) the tightening of regulations which increase barriers for entry for prospective providers and b) the tightening of policies from corporations like Wavecrest in the past that has limited certain services from being able to be provided. You just got to make do with what you've got, or simply convert your BTC into fiat every now and then.

The problem is not the lack of debit card providers per se, there is a lack of debit card that can be used without any verification. Ideally, each provider must provide an ID to use the services. This issue is also solvable if emerging companies consider that an ecosystem would make this process easier. Within the ecosystem, a franchise model must provide the banking-like service to solve the liquidity problem in addition to being who supports the debit card issuance and security in partnership with something akin to Visa or MasterCard.
copper member
Activity: 2828
Merit: 4065
Top Crypto Casino
May 10, 2019, 11:05:12 AM
#54
I believe that since then they have never updated their page on their site. I mean they may still haven't a new card provider. It's what I guess since the page doesn't even say if the card is a Visa or Mastercard.

All of the info out there needs cleaning up. There's so much old information on sites seeking clickbait as well as the card non providers themselves. If you can't be bothered to look a little deeper you'd think there were still plenty of cards available.

I guess it pays for these sites to lure users in without stating that they don't have a card to offer them.

They had a popular thread in the forum, even when they didn't have any card anymore Cheesy. Now it's dead for several months. Don't know what people are doing on this website, it's like Advcash. it's over 1 year since cryptopay announced a brand new Visa card, yet nothing. If Wirex, Advcash & friends can't partner with another company to issue cards their business is almost dead.
I've contacted their support (Cryptopay) and this indeed seems to be the case. Currently only KYC2+ verified people from Russia can get physical cards, (Passport + utility bill verified), and the rest is "Going to be announced soon".

Pretty nasty marketing if you ask me. I mean come on, at least remove the outdated card info temporarily.

I think this has been a method to keep existing customers left without a card.
And for potential new customers, it's a way of saying that for the moment it's not possible to come back later.
I hate wasting my time with such a thing.
legendary
Activity: 1946
Merit: 1427
May 09, 2019, 03:07:02 PM
#53
I believe that since then they have never updated their page on their site. I mean they may still haven't a new card provider. It's what I guess since the page doesn't even say if the card is a Visa or Mastercard.

All of the info out there needs cleaning up. There's so much old information on sites seeking clickbait as well as the card non providers themselves. If you can't be bothered to look a little deeper you'd think there were still plenty of cards available.

I guess it pays for these sites to lure users in without stating that they don't have a card to offer them.

They had a popular thread in the forum, even when they didn't have any card anymore Cheesy. Now it's dead for several months. Don't know what people are doing on this website, it's like Advcash. it's over 1 year since cryptopay announced a brand new Visa card, yet nothing. If Wirex, Advcash & friends can't partner with another company to issue cards their business is almost dead.
I've contacted their support (Cryptopay) and this indeed seems to be the case. Currently only KYC2+ verified people from Russia can get physical cards, (Passport + utility bill verified), and the rest is "Going to be announced soon".

Pretty nasty marketing if you ask me. I mean come on, at least remove the outdated card info temporarily.
copper member
Activity: 2828
Merit: 4065
Top Crypto Casino
May 08, 2019, 04:18:33 PM
#52
So far Wirex and Bitwala have been the only one to be able to recover the Wavecrest fiasco, after months and months of bureaucracy and a lot of money.

As ever it's the crypto bit that's easy. As soon as it hits conventional finance it becomes much, much harder.

It looks like Wirex and Bitwala have negotiated exclusive partnerships that must have taken quite a bit of convincing to secure.

I think people are expecting another Wavecrest, who clearly didn't a give a shit, to start issuing again to anyone who likes the idea. Not gonna happen.

I know Bitwala partnered with Solaris Bank (or SolarBank) in Germany. So they use a Baas (Banking As A Service) instead to rely on something like Wavecrest. On top of that, your funds are guaranteed by the govt (like any bank account; At least in my country and Germany, I suppose other EU countries have this guarantee too)
For someone who wants to create a company like advcash etc, It's much more flexible in the end, and there are established Baas like Treezor or Fidor.
Using a Baas seems to be a more convenient alternative they can use but pretty sure the company location matters as well. See for example Coinbase card for UK, Wirex is from UK

So, how it's Bitwala, any experiences? I use Wirex and so far I'm pretty happy with their card but I would also like to have another one, as an alternative. Wirex is UK based and I.hope Brexit will not influence their business and policy but you never know.

So far so good, I'm happy when everything works as advertised. Everything is clear and simple and you own your private key.
I wanted to get the Wirex card as plan B but I'm waiting for the "after-Brexit". Being aware of the Brexit if Coinbase says recently they will open the cards to EU too I believe the risk that something happens is low, but I prefer to wait longer to see, no big deal
legendary
Activity: 2590
Merit: 3008
Welt Am Draht
May 08, 2019, 03:18:42 PM
#51
Can you please share your experience regarding the Wirex debit card? How much fee is required per withdrawal? Is it accepted by PayPal and other payment providers without any additional verification?

Thread here - https://bitcointalksearch.org/topic/wirex-bitcoin-debit-card-buy-bitcoin-mobile-banking-send-money-1392468

Fees here - https://wirexapp.com/help/article/wirex-fees-0077

I've paid for Ebay buys through Paypal with it and it was fine. It's just another Visa card to them. Every site and shop I've used it with went through fine. That certainly wasn't the case with my old Xapo card.
hero member
Activity: 1358
Merit: 509
May 08, 2019, 03:15:59 PM
#50
So far Wirex and Bitwala have been the only one to be able to recover the Wavecrest fiasco, after months and months of bureaucracy and a lot of money.

As ever it's the crypto bit that's easy. As soon as it hits conventional finance it becomes much, much harder.

It looks like Wirex and Bitwala have negotiated exclusive partnerships that must have taken quite a bit of convincing to secure.

I think people are expecting another Wavecrest, who clearly didn't a give a shit, to start issuing again to anyone who likes the idea. Not gonna happen.

I know Bitwala partnered with Solaris Bank (or SolarBank) in Germany. So they use a Baas (Banking As A Service) instead to rely on something like Wavecrest. On top of that, your funds are guaranteed by the govt (like any bank account; At least in my country and Germany, I suppose other EU countries have this guarantee too)
For someone who wants to create a company like advcash etc, It's much more flexible in the end, and there are established Baas like Treezor or Fidor.
Using a Baas seems to be a more convenient alternative they can use but pretty sure the company location matters as well. See for example Coinbase card for UK, Wirex is from UK

So, how it's Bitwala, any experiences? I use Wirex and so far I'm pretty happy with their card but I would also like to have another one, as an alternative. Wirex is UK based and I.hope Brexit will not influence their business and policy but you never know.
Can you please share your experience regarding the Wirex debit card? How much fee is required per withdrawal? Is it accepted by PayPal and other payment providers without any additional verification?
legendary
Activity: 2870
Merit: 1068
WOLF.BET - Provably Fair Crypto Casino
May 08, 2019, 03:14:22 PM
#49
So far Wirex and Bitwala have been the only one to be able to recover the Wavecrest fiasco, after months and months of bureaucracy and a lot of money.

As ever it's the crypto bit that's easy. As soon as it hits conventional finance it becomes much, much harder.

It looks like Wirex and Bitwala have negotiated exclusive partnerships that must have taken quite a bit of convincing to secure.

I think people are expecting another Wavecrest, who clearly didn't a give a shit, to start issuing again to anyone who likes the idea. Not gonna happen.

I know Bitwala partnered with Solaris Bank (or SolarBank) in Germany. So they use a Baas (Banking As A Service) instead to rely on something like Wavecrest. On top of that, your funds are guaranteed by the govt (like any bank account; At least in my country and Germany, I suppose other EU countries have this guarantee too)
For someone who wants to create a company like advcash etc, It's much more flexible in the end, and there are established Baas like Treezor or Fidor.
Using a Baas seems to be a more convenient alternative they can use but pretty sure the company location matters as well. See for example Coinbase card for UK, Wirex is from UK

So, how it's Bitwala, any experiences? I use Wirex and so far I'm pretty happy with their card but I would also like to have another one, as an alternative. Wirex is UK based and I.hope Brexit will not influence their business and policy but you never know.
copper member
Activity: 2828
Merit: 4065
Top Crypto Casino
May 08, 2019, 01:27:29 PM
#48
So far Wirex and Bitwala have been the only one to be able to recover the Wavecrest fiasco, after months and months of bureaucracy and a lot of money.

As ever it's the crypto bit that's easy. As soon as it hits conventional finance it becomes much, much harder.

It looks like Wirex and Bitwala have negotiated exclusive partnerships that must have taken quite a bit of convincing to secure.

I think people are expecting another Wavecrest, who clearly didn't a give a shit, to start issuing again to anyone who likes the idea. Not gonna happen.

I know Bitwala partnered with Solaris Bank (or SolarBank) in Germany. So they use a Baas (Banking As A Service) instead to rely on something like Wavecrest. On top of that, your funds are guaranteed by the govt (like any bank account; At least in my country and Germany, I suppose other EU countries have this guarantee too)
For someone who wants to create a company like advcash etc, It's much more flexible in the end, and there are established Baas like Treezor or Fidor.
Using a Baas seems to be a more convenient alternative they can use but pretty sure the company location matters as well. See for example Coinbase card for UK, Wirex is from UK
legendary
Activity: 2590
Merit: 3008
Welt Am Draht
May 08, 2019, 08:53:33 AM
#47
So far Wirex and Bitwala have been the only one to be able to recover the Wavecrest fiasco, after months and months of bureaucracy and a lot of money.

As ever it's the crypto bit that's easy. As soon as it hits conventional finance it becomes much, much harder.

It looks like Wirex and Bitwala have negotiated exclusive partnerships that must have taken quite a bit of convincing to secure.

I think people are expecting another Wavecrest, who clearly didn't a give a shit, to start issuing again to anyone who likes the idea. Not gonna happen.
copper member
Activity: 2828
Merit: 4065
Top Crypto Casino
May 08, 2019, 08:43:19 AM
#46
I believe that since then they have never updated their page on their site. I mean they may still haven't a new card provider. It's what I guess since the page doesn't even say if the card is a Visa or Mastercard.

All of the info out there needs cleaning up. There's so much old information on sites seeking clickbait as well as the card non providers themselves. If you can't be bothered to look a little deeper you'd think there were still plenty of cards available.

I guess it pays for these sites to lure users in without stating that they don't have a card to offer them.

They had a popular thread in the forum, even when they didn't have any card anymore Cheesy. Now it's dead for several months. Don't know what people are doing on this website, it's like Advcash. it's over 1 year since cryptopay announced a brand new Visa card, yet nothing. If Wirex, Advcash & friends can't partner with another company to issue cards their business is almost dead.
So far Wirex and Bitwala have been the only one to be able to recover the Wavecrest fiasco, after months and months of bureaucracy and a lot of money.
legendary
Activity: 2590
Merit: 3008
Welt Am Draht
May 08, 2019, 05:11:17 AM
#45
I believe that since then they have never updated their page on their site. I mean they may still haven't a new card provider. It's what I guess since the page doesn't even say if the card is a Visa or Mastercard.

All of the info out there needs cleaning up. There's so much old information on sites seeking clickbait as well as the card non providers themselves. If you can't be bothered to look a little deeper you'd think there were still plenty of cards available.

I guess it pays for these sites to lure users in without stating that they don't have a card to offer them.
copper member
Activity: 2828
Merit: 4065
Top Crypto Casino
May 06, 2019, 12:07:14 PM
#44
Hmm. I just tried to order a card from https://cryptopay.me/bitcoin-debit-card/ contrary to what's stated there though, it first tells me cards aren't available in my country. (I'm EU right now.)

Then it tells me to upload my ID when i click "Order Card".
Am i doing something wrong/missing something, or is their 1000EUR no-KYC card bullshit?

Any other KYC-free alternatives i'd ought to try?



e:
Anyone ever heard of https://uquid.com/faq (?)
They also seem to offer a "1000EUR no-kyc required"-esque card.

I did have the cryptopay card, I used 2 times only  Cheesy, after they disabled the cards since it was issued by W.C. It was the one that lasted the shortest for me. I believe that since then they have never updated their page on their site. I mean they may still haven't a new card provider. It's what I guess since the page doesn't even say if the card is a Visa or Mastercard.
legendary
Activity: 2590
Merit: 3008
Welt Am Draht
May 06, 2019, 10:56:41 AM
#43
My GBP Coinbase card supposedly arrives this week. The app is still useless. it took 15 or so attempts to order the card. Now it wants my phone number but does nothing but flicker at me and eats what I type in. They better buck up.
legendary
Activity: 1946
Merit: 1427
May 06, 2019, 09:56:29 AM
#42
Hmm. I just tried to order a card from https://cryptopay.me/bitcoin-debit-card/ contrary to what's stated there though, it first tells me cards aren't available in my country. (I'm EU right now.)

Then it tells me to upload my ID when i click "Order Card".
Am i doing something wrong/missing something, or is their 1000EUR no-KYC card bullshit?

Any other KYC-free alternatives i'd ought to try?



e:
Anyone ever heard of https://uquid.com/faq (?)
They also seem to offer a "1000EUR no-kyc required"-esque card.
hero member
Activity: 1666
Merit: 753
May 05, 2019, 04:58:08 AM
#41
I don't know if you use Bitcoin debit cards but to my opinion there is serious lack of their providers in the market. In one moment we had a flood of such cards that appeared (Xapo, Advcash, Mistertango, Wirex) and when Visa pulled back their services many gave up permanently.
Now I think that only Wirex has a properly working card.

To my opinion there are many users interested in crypto debit cards services but still there are no new providers appearing at the market. What do you think that is reason for that and will that change in the future?

There are probably more debit cards available and Wirex is definitely not the only one, but you're right on the issue.

The problem isn't a lack of bitcoin debit card providers per se, though. There is a lack of anonymous debit cards that could previously be used without any verification, and now, every single provider requires you to provide at least basic ID before you are able to use their services.

There isn't really nothing that could be done though, because this stems from a) the tightening of regulations which increase barriers for entry for prospective providers and b) the tightening of policies from corporations like Wavecrest in the past that has limited certain services from being able to be provided. You just got to make do with what you've got, or simply convert your BTC into fiat every now and then.
legendary
Activity: 1792
Merit: 1283
May 02, 2019, 05:12:48 AM
#40
I've recently started using a Bitcoin debit card that's not actually marketed as a Bitcoin debit card, namely the one from Neteller.
Aside from supporting Bitcoin, it also supports about a dozen other payment methods to load up your card, like bank transfer, Paypal, various local payment options (Ideal, Bancontact, etc.), ...

They do charge a 2.5% fee for depositing Bitcoins, but other than that the fees are pretty limited.

Have you ever made a Bitcoin deposit and then withdrawn money to the ATM with the card?
Because I always believed that with Neteller we could only deposit (wallet only) and it was not possible to convert it to $/€/£ and then withdraw the money with the card.

Well, I thought I had, but actually not, I'd withdrawn the funds that I had deposited through other payment processors.
Just read this bit in their FAQ:

Quote
Note: Funds deposited via Bitcoin/Bitcoin Cash are available only for transfers to merchant sites, and to other NETELLER members. These funds cannot be withdrawn via ATM*, used for point of sale purchases.

https://support.neteller.com/PAYMENTS/Deposits-Money-In/85238436/How-do-I-deposit-via-Bitcoin-Bitcoin-Cash.htm

That sucks, it's the primary reason why I ordered their card :-/ Just have it since 4 weeks ago.
legendary
Activity: 2366
Merit: 1206
April 27, 2019, 05:52:42 PM
#39
Cryptocurrency based debit cards are not that effective. The regulation against the Cryptocurrency is still under observations and monitory.
That is one point of the reason that Institution doesn't accept the crypto debit. Also as a point of view of a financial institution, you have to know if you can have a profit with the service you will be giving. For now, the crypto debit card is really unpredictable.

Well, let's just see the future if we will have it again. But I think a debit card with crypto won't work as of now.
legendary
Activity: 2268
Merit: 18509
April 27, 2019, 11:49:06 AM
#38
You never know when your bank will strike in the UK. It's something I'd rather keep completely separate. I can't be arsed to create a burner bank account.
You make a good point, and you never know when a bank will strike in any country, to be fair. My biggest stumbling block to getting one has always been doing KYC for a company in such a poorly regulated space, with unknown security measures and often anonymous or unknown people behind it. I wouldn't worry too much about it being shutdown suddenly, because I'd only ever be storing a small amount of funds on the card at any one time. If anyone could recommend a good international card from a company with a good reputation, I would be all ears. Even big companies in this space that you would think would be trustworthy (thinking of Coinbase here), have shown they can't be trusted with your data.
legendary
Activity: 2590
Merit: 3008
Welt Am Draht
April 27, 2019, 11:37:51 AM
#37
That sucks. I was just thinking of getting a virtual card from Cryptopay.me , and still are. Just trying to calculate if the risks offset the upside (anonymous VISA card..)

As long as you don't put serious amounts on it it's worth a punt.

The Bitpay card didn't let you keep BTC on it, everything sent to it was instantly converted to GBP or EUR.

When it shut down, with literally no warning, there were people tweeting them with balances of £5-10,000 who were halfway around the world with no other option. That's bad. Obviously poor planning on their part too. They were prompt enough about sorting out the balances within a few weeks but that's not much use if you were in country trying to fund your Filipino hooker's womb transplant.


At the moment, I still think the best option is to get a credit card from a reputable bank (which also isn't shutting down accounts of anyone associated with cryptocurrencies)

That's why I'm happy to take the modest hit they have. You never know when your bank will strike in the UK. It's something I'd rather keep completely separate. I can't be arsed to create a burner bank account.
legendary
Activity: 2268
Merit: 18509
April 27, 2019, 11:33:10 AM
#36
At the moment, I still think the best option is to get a credit card from a reputable bank (which also isn't shutting down accounts of anyone associated with cryptocurrencies), sell your bitcoins privately or on an exchange, and then use that fiat to pay off your credit card. As mentioned, most companies which are offering "bitcoin cards" are just after ICO money. I'm not a huge fan of doing KYC for anyone, but I'd much rather do it for a reputable bank than I would do it for a bunch of anonymous internet strangers.

You are also likely to get a better exchange rate doing it yourself than with the fees you would have to pay on any bitcoin card.
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