The Fold app, known as a Bitcoin lighting-compatible mobile app that offers users Bitcoin rewards while shopping, recently joined the Visa Fintech Fast Track Program. Joining this program will help the app launch a new Visa co-branded card, which continues the offer of Bitcoin rewards for purchases made at retailers.
The Fold app CEO, Will Reeves, spoke to the cryptonews media recently and said that Visa would be providing the company with financial support as well as a dedicated team to bring the new Bitcoin cash back rewards card to the market.
As reported before, the Gold app has been offering users the ability to spend BTC or fit at major retailers including Amazon, Uber and Starbucks. As such, it requires them to synchronize their accounts either with an existing credit card or with a Lighting wallet.
With the new offering, Visa will enable the firm’s users to use the integrated service. In times when the Bitcoin news are showing positive movement and many new industry players are exploring the possibilities of various crypto debit cards, Reeves described the Fold app as the following:
“Other cards announced by major exchanges […] require you to spend your crypto triggering taxable events. Our card enables you to spend dollars and earn Bitcoin.”
He also clarified that earning rewards denominated in Bitcoin won’t trigger a taxable event “as the Bitcoin is not being sold.” As such, the card will be functional at over 10 million merchants worldwide.
The major United States crypto exchange Coinbase also announced a principal membership of Visa last month, showing that they aim to diversify and promising users a more flexible and familiar “legacy” interface to earn and access cryptocurrency.
This February, we could also see the blockchain popularizer and sports fan token project Socios announcing its launch of an integrated membership and a fiat-crypto prepaid debit card, which would also provide blockchain-based ID functionalities.
Meanwhile, reports show that besides the Fold app, there are many similar projects going out. Amazon has also been slow to directly integrate cryptocurrencies, leaving the field to many potential competitors which are using crypto rewards, gift cards or debit cards to bridge the gap between established eCommerce and Bitcoin.
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