Cryptocurrency platform Crypto.com launches Australian crypto-linked Visa card

Crypto.com has launched a crypto-linked Visa card in the local market and sees Australia as one of its key growth hubs as it looks to swell its user base to 100 million.

Karl Mohan, general manager Asia & Pacific of Crypto.com, says Australia is one of the platform’s key markets. Picture: Arsineh Houspian

Crypto.com has named Australia as one of its key growth markets as it embarks on a major marketing push to expand its global user base from 10 million to 100 million by 2023.

The Singapore-based cryptocurrency platform, which bills itself as the world’s fastest growing crypto app, in recent days kicked off a global ad campaign led by actor Matt Damon and simultaneously launched its crypto-linked Visa card into the local market.

Users of the card, one of the first of its kind in Australia, can convert their cryptocurrencies into Australian dollars and pay with their card anywhere Visa is accepted.

The sign-up rate over the first few days of the card launch has been “amazing”, Crypto.com’s new general manager for APAC, Karl Mohan, told The Australian.

“We’ve had close to 4000 user signups per day; so we’re very, very excited about this. We see the adoption of the crypto bank card to be one of the key selling propositions of using crypto.com.”

The big difference between its card and other crypto bank cards is that crypto.com has a direct membership with Visa, he added.

“So we deal directly with Visa; there’s no middleman here and that’s because we didn’t want to outsource compliance and the whole regulatory framework to a third party. We are adhering to Visa’s standards that they apply to banks and all of the other debit card issuers.”

This should give customers a greater sense of security and assurance that crypto.com “will do good by them”, Mr Mohan said.

Australians are 100 per cent ready for crypto-linked cards, he added.

Customers can earn rewards by using the fee-free cards, which act like debit cards, with the top tier users getting up to 8 per cent back on all spending. Other benefits, tier-dependent, include complimentary airport lounge access and 100 per cent rebates for Spotify, Netflix, and Amazon Prime subscriptions.

But to get the reward benefits above that of the lowest tier, users have to “stake”, or lock up, a certain amount of Crypto.com’s own coin, CRO.

While the card has just launched in Australia, it has been available in a number of countries for some time.

For the six months through June, close to $US1bn was processed on the VISA cards globally, with the shift away from cash due to Covid-19, alongside the widespread move from credit to debit cards, aiding its adoption.

Melbourne-based Mr Mohan, a former NAB and Wirecard executive, said Australia was one of five key markets for the crypto platform, alongside Europe, the US, Brazil and Canada.

“Australians are eager to adopt cryptocurrency and blockchain technology: two in five currently hold crypto in their portfolio,” he said.

Australia’s fintech-friendly environment, strong regulatory reputation and highly skilled workforce all add to the appeal of the local market for the platform, which saw its global user base climb from three million to 10 million in a 12-month period.

“We‘re on a mission to accelerate the world’s transition to cryptocurrency,” Mr Mohan said.

“It’s about facilitating the adoption of cryptocurrency ownership on everyday people. So we’re very focused on the retail sector. While we do have institutional customers in some of our bigger platforms, the real focus is in enabling everyday customers to actually participate in the crypto economy.”

Operating since 2016, Crypto.com’s app has about 200 cryptocurrencies available for trading, including multiple cryptocurrency pairs.

The company’s ambitions for the Australian market come amid surging interest in cryptocurrencies and a broader push to move digital assets into the mainstream.

Commonwealth Bank, the nation’s largest lender, just days ago announced that it would allow its customers to trade crypto on its banking app. Meanwhile, Australia’s first ASX-listed crypto-linked ETF, the BetaShares Crypto Innovators, smashed records when it debuted on Thursday.

CBA stepping into the market was a positive for the industry, according to Mr Mohan.

“The more people are aware and exposed to crypto as an asset class, the better. The shift is to actually get participation.

“What we find is customers tend to start off the journey with the brand they know, but once they have awareness, customers gravitate to providers like us that are dedicated to crypto alone.”

“So, we look at CBA’s participation as highly encouraging and my belief, at least in Australia, is that those customers that are a lot more savvy and actually see value in crypto trading will migrate to our app.”