eToro to launch its own debit cards

An investment platform, eToro, which supports trading Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, plans to begin issuing its own debit cards. The first holders will be members of eToro Club in the United Kingdom; subsequently, ordering will be available to residents of the EU and to everyone else not in the club, TechCrunch reports.

The card issuer will be the eToro-acquired company Marq Millions, licensed as an electronic money issuer and holding principal membership in Visa. The deal figure was not disclosed. Marq Millions will rename to eToro Money, and the current management will stay in place.

As part of the deal, eToro will inherit the EMI licence from the United Kingdom’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the status of a full member of the Visa payment system.

According to the report, the planned card will enable instant deposits and withdrawals. eToro says this will give clients an additional route to convert profits into fiat.

eToro representatives had hinted in December that the card could begin in the second quarter of the year. Despite the delays—potentially prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic—CEO and co-founder Yoni Assia expects strong interest from the platform’s 14 million registered users.

In April, the Fold payment app developer joined Visa’s fintech program to issue a Bitcoin-cashback debit card.

In July, Zap, the developer of the popular Lightning wallet, announced joint plans with Visa to issue cards for Bitcoin payments.

Visa later said it was prepared to actively support the development of digital payments, with a focus on security and privacy, and to back cryptocurrency projects and blockchain-based solutions.

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