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One of the leading cryptocurrency exchange. Binance will soon launch a highly anticipated Swipe-powered crypto debit card that supports four cryptocurrencies.

Late last year, the company promised that its users within the European Economic Area (EEA) could apply for this crypto card starting in August. Shortly, after that, the UK will follow suit. 

Currently, Swipe is available in 31 countries in the EEA. Unfortunately, Swipe doesn't support the US at the moment, but it is purportedly planning to make it available after completing the necessary registrations and licensing.

Binance users outside the EEA region are encouraged to register their interest through the company's Card website, GetBinanceCard.com. 

Binance Debit Card Will Support Four Cryptos at Launch

Binance announced that the card would support currencies at the launch. The supported cryptos include Swipe's native SXP, Bitcoin (BTC), and Binance's stablecoin, Binance USD (BUSD), and native token BNB.

According to the announcement, the company expects that the card will be widely adopted. The rollout will enable users to convert their cryptos into fiat, which they can spend at over 60 million merchants that accept the crypto card. 

The Binance debit card gets expected to do everything a regular card does. It is even easier since you can load your card with funds via the Binance Card App and spend it at any Visa accepting points worldwide.

It is as straightforward as moving your Bitcoin from one wallet to another. The company pointed out that the new crypto debit card will only convert its cryptos into local fiat currencies at the point of sales.

So, there is no need for users to convert their cryptocurrencies to fiat manually. Furthermore, users can choose the order in which they prefer to utilize their crypto assets.  

About a week ago, Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao demonstrated successful transactions made with the Binance Card, officially confirming that the card will get powered by Swipe, a company they acquired just a few weeks ago. Zhao believes that the Binance crypto card will increase the appetite for crypto around the globe. 

In a separate communiqué, Joselito Lizarondo, the Swipe CEO, explained how the card works. If you have 75 Euros in BNB and 50 Euros in BTC, then you made a payment of 100 Euros, the transaction would get approved.

The card would then deduct your cryptocurrency in the order you select, which means that users will store their cryptos on the card wallet and will only convert them to fiat when they make a transaction. 

Making Crypto Accessible to the Masses 

Following the acquisition, both companies will collaborate to expand purchases and payments in cryptocurrencies via the conventional financial system. The move gets expected to bridge the gap between crypto and fiat. 

To achieve their mission of introducing crypto to the masses, Zhao alluded that off-ramps will be a crucial component. By enabling crypto users to convert their assets or make payments with these cryptocurrencies, and making it possible for merchants to accept fiat will improve the crypto experience for all seamlessly. 

The Swipe Wallet will continue to the central digital bank account for users, thus enabling access to traditional banking services. Headquartered in the Philippines, Swipe offers a cryptocurrency card that supports more than 30 cryptos and gets issued through Contis Financial Services Ltd.

The latter is a Visa member regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA).  

Even before the joined partnership, Swipe had plans to expand its services to several Asian and North American markets. The official announcement mentioned that Swipe would enable its users to buy and make payments using BNB tokens directly on its platform with fiat currencies.

The statement added that the partnership with Binance would explore other opportunities going forward. 

Swipe will ride on Binance's diverse user base and world-recognized track record, alongside a team of fintech experts to make cryptocurrencies more accessible to the general public.  

Binance Previous Efforts to Push for Crypto Adoption

Binance plans to introduce cryptocurrencies into mainstream finance have been in the works for a long time. In a 2019 statement, the leading cryptocurrency exchange attempted to capture more users by allowing purchase through Visa debit and credit cards. 

According to the release, the company mentioned that its users within the European Economic Area were able to directly buy four cryptocurrencies by linking their Visa cards to their crypto accounts. Once connected to Visa, the users could purchase BCT, XRP, ETH, and BNB with either Euros or British pounds. 

In September 2019, Binance partnered with payment processing firm Koinal to allow its users to purchase five cryptos on Binance.com using Visa and MasterCard for a 2.5% fee. Immediately after that, Koinal got rolled out in several jurisdictions, including mainland China and the United States.  

Earlier that year, Binance announced a similar partnership with Simplex, a leading payment processing company. At that time, Zhao promoted the alliance as a move to provide Binance traders with easy access to crypto.

He also stated that their partnership with Simplex would bridge the gap between crypto traders and credit card payments globally. Nimrod Lehavi, Co-Founder and CEO of Simplex, shared the same sentiments.

He claimed that straightforward and quick credit card payments are a vital ingredient in widening the adaption of cryptocurrencies in the mainstream markets.

Credit Card Companies Have Been Slow to Facilitate Crypto Trades

There is a new wave within the crypto space to reach out to the general public. Most exchanges globally now are expanding how traders can use or purchase digital assets. They do so by releasing their branded debits cards like in the above example or adding fiat gateways. In some cases, they allow direct buying via major payment carriers. 

One of the challenges of making crypto available in mainstream finance is that most financial services firms have been reluctant to partner with the crypto market. The main reason is that they consider this market to be volatile and unregulated.

Not long ago, a slew of banks, including Citibank India, JPMorgan, Lloyd's Banking Group, Wells Fargo, and Virgin Money, banned their customers from using their cards to purchase digital assets.   

The crypto industry is still in its nascent stages, so most of the money is again moving in the fiat system. But the latest wave of innovations and partnerships is likely to grow the ecosystem as we head into the future.   

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