Fold Holdings, a Bitcoin financial services company, has partnered with Stripe and Visa to launch a new Fold Bitcoin Credit Card.
Announced on September 3, the upcoming launch will see the Bitcoin-only rewards credit card enable customers to earn Bitcoin with every purchase with a view to help them accumulate “long-term wealth”.
The Fold Bitcoin Credit Card will be issued on the Visa network and supported by Stripe Issuing, helping to deliver 3.5% cashback in Bitcoin on purchases with no additional categories attached or deposits required. Cardholders will be able to earn 2% Bitcoin back instantly, while also able to earn 1.5% back when paying off purchases from the Fold Checking account via qualified activity.
The Bitcoin credit card is also eligible at several retailers and marketplaces, such as Amazon, Uber/Uber Eats, Starbucks, DoorDash and more, with the option to earn 10% back with these selected companies.
“Our credit card offers clear and compelling value and makes bitcoin easily accessible to everyone,” said Will Reeves, Chairman, CEO and Founder of Fold.
“There are no categories to manage, no tokens to stake, no exchange account or balance requirements; just real Bitcoin, earned automatically with every purchase. It’s simple enough for someone new to bitcoin, but built with the transparency and control early adopters expect.
“This is the kind of financial tool we’ve always believed Bitcoin could power, and with Stripe’s infrastructure and Visa’s global reach, we can finally deliver it at scale.”
Needed Bitcoin simplicity?
As noted by Reeves, Fold aims for Bitcoin exposure and handling to become much more seamless and accessible with the new card.
With Bitcoin reaching all-time high valuations over the past year, reaching a peak price of $123,344 on August 13, accessibility to the cryptocurrency can be viewed as scarce by regular consumers, while onboarding to crypto exchanges can also be a long, time-consuming process.
Despite being developed in 2008 as a peer-to-peer, decentralised payment method without the need for intermediaries, Bitcoin has quickly become one of the most valuable assets to invest in with many countries, such as the US, increasing their Bitcoin reserves.
Fold intends for all of its credit card holders to gain some level of access to Bitcoin through everyday purchases without the additional need of knowing when to buy, hold, or sell. While not paying directly with Bitcoin during transactions, there is a payment element attached to the Fold Bitcoin Credit Card allowing for cashback to be earned.
“Fold’s bitcoin rewards, paired with Visa’s scale and security, gives consumers a safe, simple way to earn bitcoin as they shop,” said Cuy Sheffield, Head of Crypto at Visa.
“With the Fold Bitcoin Credit Card, cardholders can earn bitcoin anywhere Visa is accepted.”
Bitcoin cashback: a new retailer opportunity
Fold is not the only company to have launched a Bitcoin-dedicated product designed to expose everyday consumers to the cryptocurrency.
On September 9, easyGroup, the parent company of airline easyJet, launched the easyBitcoin app to enable its customers to buy and earn Bitcoin. Similar to Fold, the app allows users to earn 4.5% APY interest in Bitcoin for all their US-dollar denominated purchases of the asset.
