HK Company to ‘Issue 100,000 Crypto Visa Cards’

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper

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Tim Alper is a British journalist and features writer who has worked at Cryptonews.com since 2018. He has written for media outlets such as the BBC, the Guardian, and Chosun Ilbo. He has also worked...

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September 15, 2023

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A Hong Kong company is set to issue 100,000 “cryptocurrency Visa prepaid cards” over the next two months, in what it claims will be a first for Asia.

Source: Crypto.com

Per newspaper the South China Morning Post, the company, Crypto.com (formerly known as Monaco) has partnered with Germany’s Wirecard Bank’s subsidiary Wirecard Singapore PTE LTD for the project, and will begin issuing the cards in Singapore, with a view to spreading “globally.”

“To holders of cryptocurrencies, having the peace of mind that you can readily convert back into fiat currencies and cash out is very important,” Kris Marszalek, Crypto.com co-founder and chief executive, was quoted as saying by the report. The company will take an unspecified cut of the transaction-processing fee as revenue. It will also earn revenue from its cryptocurrency trading services and an automated cryptocurrency buying and selling service that is still undergoing internal testing, the report added.

Crypto.com says it will first apply for money lending licenses in both Singapore and Hong Kong. It will then look to roll out its cryptocurrency prepaid cards, which will allow cryptocurrency-backed lending. The company says cardholders will be able to take out Bitcoin-backed loans, or use its native MCO token.

The project has obtained a stored-value facility from the regulatory Monetary Authority of Singapore.

As reported in July, Monaco bought Crypto.com domain for “millions”.

MCO price chart:

Meanwhile, Singapore’s FinTech Association President Chia Hock Lai and Hong Kong Blockchain Association co-chairman Tony Tong will head for Seoul, South Korea, later this month for a “crypto haven” summit per ZDNet. The duo, who will also be joined by Lithuanian finance minister Vilius Šapoka, are expected to meet the pro-crypto governor of South Korea’s Jeju Island province, who is currently leading a charge to overturn Seoul’s blanket ban on initial coin offerings (ICOs). Swiss and Maltese officials are also expected to be in attendance.