Visa has partnered with cryptocurrency exchange FTX to offer its debit card service to customers in over 40 countries.
The collaboration will allow FTX customers to convert their cryptocurrencies into fiat currency by simply linking their Visa card to their custodial account. Backend conversion will be completed by Visa and FTX.
With inflation rates in Turkey and Argentina reaching 83% and 78%, respectively, the companies stated that they intend to focus on emerging markets in Latin America, Asia, and Europe.
According to FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried, the collaboration will make it easier for merchants to accept cryptocurrencies and expand crypto’s utility beyond being a speculative asset class.
On a lighter note, Bankman-Fried stated that cryptocurrencies were created to disrupt traditional payment systems; however, it is encouraging to see that banks and payment companies are embracing the technology.
“It is a technology that we absolutely see disrupting traditional payment networks,” Bankman-Fried added. “I respect the fact that many of them are leaning into it.”
According to Visa CFO Vasant Prabhu, even though the cryptocurrency market has dropped by more than 50% by 2022, customers are still interested in cryptocurrencies, with more holding stable coins in their crypto accounts.
Payment giants are rushing to cryptocurrency
To date, Visa has collaborated with over 70 crypto platforms, including Binance, to enable customers to spend cryptocurrencies at 80 million merchants worldwide.
Mastercard has also been making inroads into the crypto ecosystem. It collaborated with Coinbase to enable users to buy NFTs directly with their Mastercard debit and credit cards.
PayPal announced earlier this month that it had launched a payment gateway for users in the United States to easily transfer, send, and receive cryptocurrencies.
To read our blog on “Bitcoin, according to FTX’s creator, has no future as a payment network,” click here