Nexo Partners Mastercard to Launch Crypto Payment Card

Leading crypto lending and savings platform Nexo has launched a crypto-powered payment card in collaboration with global payments giant Mastercard.

Nexo Rolls Out Crypto Card

In an official press release, the crypto lender said the card dubbed “Nexo card” allows users to collect loans and use their digital assets such as bitcoin as collateral without having to sell them.

Nexo added that the new crypto card is available in both virtual and physical forms. Only customers who reside in selected European countries can access the cards for now, but they will be made available to other countries in the future, the company said.

Nexo Joins Forces With Mastercard

For the launch of the card, Nexo partnered with global payments and technology company Mastercard and payment solutions provider DiPocket.

According to the crypto lender, the infrastructure provided by the two companies will make it possible for millions of merchants globally to accept the Nexo card. 

“Launching the Nexo Card in Europe in partnership with Mastercard and DiPocket is a big milestone for us and the latest proof of the immense synergy between the existing financial network and digital assets,” commented Antoni Trenchev, co-founder and managing partner at Nexo.

Growing Number of Crypto Cards 

Meanwhile, this is not the first time Mastercard has inked a partnership with a crypto firm. In April 2021, the payments giant teamed up with U.S. crypto exchange Gemini to launch a crypto rewards credit card. Cardholders are rewarded with a portion of the cryptocurrencies deposited into their Gemini accounts.

Other crypto firms have also launched their own cards to allow holders to spend their cryptocurrecies when shopping online.

In March 2020, Binance launched its crypto payment card dubbed “Binance Card.” The card makes it possible for users to pay bills, buy gifts for relatives, and buy groceries online without having to convert their crypto to fiat before making payments. 

Paxful has also rolled out its own crypto card. In November 2020, the peer-to-peer bitcoin marketplace partnered with fintech firm BlockCard to launch crypto debit cards in the United States.