Visa collaborates with Ripio to launch Bitcoin Debit Card

Global financial service provider Visa partnered with Ripio, a Bitcoin wallet, to launch its first Bitcoin Debit card in Brazil. The Bitcoin wallet announced the development in its latest blog post. Ripio plans to expand its operation to the Argentine Market beyond Brazil. 

Ripio aims to ensure the expansion of its services across all the countries in Latin America. The company plans to enter the markets of Uruguay, Colombia, Mexico, and Spain.

According to Ripio, the Bitcoin debit card will help users to purchase bitcoin and other crypto products in Brazil. The launch of the Visa debit card is coming a few months after its close rival,  Mastercard, announced the launch of its new debit card.

The card will be made available for customers through the Ripio website. The website allows customers to make payments with Bitcoin or any of the 28 cryptos listed on the platform. Also, it authorizes operations with Brazilian Real (BRL), a local currency.

According to Ripio CEO Sebastian Serrano, about 250,000 cards will be issued before the year runs out. He further stated the products would be available for users using the encryption platform in the country.

Serrano further states that about a 5% cashback incentive in BTC is available to encourage continuous card usage. The BTC cashback is said to be worth about BRL 250 monthly fee; Serrano also stated that Ripio plans to make rewards available for other tokens.

Ripio began its operation in Brazil in 2021 after acquiring a crypto exchange, Bitcoin Trade. The firm was the largest exchange in the country, with about 300,000 registered users. BitcoinTrade will merge with Ripio before the year runs out.

The Argentina-based exchange is gradually establishing its presence in Brazil. Recall the exchange partnered with Mercado Libre, an e-commerce firm in Latin America, to launch the Mercado Coin cryptocurrency.

Visa and Mastercard jostling for presence in the Latin market

Visa, in recent times, has continued to jostle the Latin market with its closest rival, Mastercard. Recall that Mastercard recently partnered with Binance to launch its card in Argentina. Only MasterCard customers in Argentina will be able to access the product. The payment firm is also planning on expanding its operation into other Latin American countries that are thriving.

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