TL DR
Crypto debit card market is quite new, and there’s not really much to tell about its history. It’s commonly assumed that everything started in 2014. The problem of accessibility is one that lingered for a long period of time within the crypto industry. Prior to this, despite the promises offered by cryptocurrencies and their underlying technologies, critics pointed to the unavailability of seamless ways to transact using cryptos as a discouraging factor for anticipating entrants. The rigorous back and forth processes between exchanges when converting from crypto to fiat and vice versa often come across as inconvenient, especially when transactions are expected to be immediate.
Even though crypto debit cards have been the best solution for direct crypto spending so far, nobody tells it’s an ideal one, as there are some substantial disadvantages. Anonymity has always been one of the most important bitcoin features. That’s why it may seem paradoxical that the situation with bitcoin debit cards is the opposite: absolute privacy is simply impossible here. Indeed, most of the service providers in the USA and Europe will require a whole set of documents, among which are an ID card, social security number, driver license, and some other documents.
Another disadvantage of crypto debit cards are prices and additional often hidden fees. On average, users have to pay $15 for a physical card and about $3 for its virtual analog and then, in some cases, add around $60 for express delivery. Spending doesn’t stop there, though: there are also fees for domestic ($2,50) and international ($3,50) ATM withdrawal. At the same time, international transactions fee is something around 3%. Card service is one more item of expenditure: it includes monthly/annual service ($1 and $15 respectively), PIN change (~$1), card replacement (~ $12), etc.
While these blockchain-backed currencies hold great promise in terms of revolutionizing the existing systems, the “usability factor” of these cryptocurrencies stands in the way of their wider adoption. This is largely owing to the regulatory ambiguity and limited merchant acceptance (in direct form). The fast-emerging segment of cryptocurrency debit cards may perhaps be one solution to this problem. While there are issues to be resolved around cryptocurrencies, such as volatility in price, regulatory treatment, and so on, the direct usability of these blockchain assets is a critical barrier holding back their wider adoption. In the times to come, cryptocurrency debit cards will play an important role in narrowing the gap between the crypto and real world, if not bridging it completely.
The market for crypto debit cards is just getting started. Entrepreneurs willing to take advantage of it need to keep following ideas in mind: (1) Avoid limits as much as possible. Cryptocurrency users hate limits. Think outside the traditional limits. (2) Reduce and simplify fees. Many options in the crypto debit card market right now are loaded with fees, from monthly fees to loading fees to withdrawal fees and more. (3) Reach the unbanked. As many as 2.5 billion adults globally are not using banks. But they do have cellphones. These folks are a prime market for cryptocurrency services. Entrepreneurs can make it easy for them to access educational and other services using crypto debit cards. Two-and-a-half billion people is a huge market. In sum, crypto debit cards are turning national currencies into an app that fits in your wallet. The crypto debit card is the next-level innovation that’s going to rocket cryptocurrencies into the mainstream for everyday consumers.