By Natalie DeCoste
Visa announced Wednesday that more than $1 billion worth of cryptocurrency was spent by consumers globally on goods and services through crypto-linked cards during the first six months of the year.
“We are doing a lot to create an ecosystem that makes cryptocurrency more usable and more like any other currency. People are exploring ways in which they can use cryptocurrencies for things they would use normal currencies for. There are lots of issues in terms of volatility, etc. But that’s up to the owners of cryptocurrencies to manage and track,” Visa CFO Vasant Prabhu told CNBC.
Visa is capitalizing on the growing popularity of the currency with the addition of the FTX cryptocurrency platform, founded by billionaire Sam Bankman-Fried, to its Fintech Fast Track program. The FTX Card is now backed by the Swipe Visa Debit Card and links the debit card to a customer’s FTX U.S. account.
“We see a lot of volume on our [network] of people buying cryptocurrencies at these various regulated exchanges, and as far as we can see, that trend continues,” Prabhu said.
Visa is not the only company witnessing consumers’ attraction to cryptocurrency growing. Visa’s rival Mastercard put out a study that showed that 93% of North American consumers plan to use cryptocurrency or other emerging payment technology, such as biometrics, contactless, or QR code systems, in the next year. The credit card company’s study also revealed that 75% of millennials would use cryptocurrency if they understood it better.
Much like Visa, Mastercard is bringing crypto payments into the pockets of consumers with its Gemini credit card, which launches this summer in the U.S. With the card, consumers will be able to earn up to 3% back in their crypto of choice, with rewards available in their Gemini Exchange account immediately after purchase. In the Gemini Exchange account, customers can trade for other cryptocurrencies, earn interest through Gemini Earn, or cash out for U.S. dollars.
“As more consumers look to enter the crypto ecosystem, the Gemini Credit Card gives them an easy point of entry and an effortless way to earn crypto as a reward without changing their daily spending habits. Mastercard continues to evolve and meet both industry and consumer demands and commit to the crypto space. We’re excited to partner with them on our first real-time crypto rewards card, further helping to bring crypto mainstream,” said Tyler Winklevoss, CEO of Gemini.
Even with the added support for cryptocurrency, Visa does not plan to add any cryptocurrency to its balance sheet the way companies like Tesla and MicroStrategy did.
“We don’t hold cryptocurrencies on our balance sheet today. We hold currencies on our balance sheet that we need to run our business. We hold currencies that we get paid in, or we pay people in. That tends to be the dollar, euro, pound. So we don’t have plans to hold cryptocurrency because it’s not typically the way we get paid or the way we pay people,” said Prahbu.
