It’s about to get a lot easier to earn bitcoin thanks to a first-of-its-kind credit card: the Bitcoin Rewards Credit Card. While there are debit cards by Coinbase and Fold that offer bitcoin rewards, this is the first credit card that rewards you with the cryptocurrency, instead of points or miles.
Visa and cryptocurrency financial tech company BlockFi have partnered to release the Bitcoin Rewards Credit Card to U.S. residents in all states except for New York (due to regulatory restrictions) in spring 2021. The card will be issued by Evolve Bank & Trust, and Deserve will be a technology and program management partner for the card.
Cardholders will earn 1.5% cash back on all purchases that will automatically be converted to bitcoin and placed into a BlockFi account every month. Since bitcoin earned from card transactions is deposited into a BlockFi account, it’s regarded as standard crypto funding, and it can be withdrawn, earn interest, be traded, or used as collateral toward a crypto-backed loan.
The Bitcoin Rewards Credit Card will have a $200 annual fee, but it can be offset in the first year thanks to the card’s welcome bonus: earn $250 in bitcoin after spending $3,000 or more on the card within the first three months from account opening.
Additional details of the card’s rates and fees, like its APR and foreign transaction fee, aren’t available yet.
Existing BlockFi customers with funded BlockFi Interest Accounts can join the waitlist now. The waitlist will be open to the general public in January 2021.
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