News: 0175359621

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Visa, Coinbase Offer Real-Time Crypto Purchases Via Debit Cards (bloomberg.com)

(Wednesday October 30, 2024 @12:44PM (msmash) from the how-about-that dept.)


Visa customers with eligible debit cards will be able to deposit funds into their Coinbase accounts -- sometimes instantly -- [1]via a partnership announced by the payments giant and crypto exchange. From a report:

> Coinbase already has millions of connections to customers' debit cards but this new development allows for the real-time flow of funds for customers in the US and European Union, according to the Tuesday statement.

>

> Eligible Visa debit card holders can now "take advantage of trading opportunities day and night," said Yanilsa Gonzalez Ore, head of the Visa Direct business for North America. Visa, which powers the Coinbase debit card, said customers will also be able to buy cryptocurrencies on Coinbase with an eligible debit card and cash out their money from the platform to a bank account, also via the card.



[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-10-30/visa-coinbase-offer-real-time-crypto-purchases-via-debit-cards



Ugh, paywall (Score:4)

by DrMrLordX ( 559371 )

[1]https://cointelegraph.com/news... [cointelegraph.com]

There, now you don' t have to use Bloomberg. Anyway, more on-ramp opportunities are potentially good, but it's a shame that it involves a CEX and a traditional payment platform (VISA). Part of the promise of blockchain - particularly high-throughput L2s on Ethereum - was to cut out traditional middlemen who charge significant amounts of money to process payments.

Meanwhile the crypto developers of the world (looking at you, Ethereum Foundation) that have had years to take the lead on providing an alternative to expensive credit card processing have done very little.

[1] https://cointelegraph.com/news/visa-coinbase-partner-instant-crypto-buys-debit-cards

Re: (Score:2)

by snowshovelboy ( 242280 )

Unfortunately, the blockchain's per-transaction costs are still orders of magnitude higher than those of traditional payment platforms. You can easily verify this by dividing the amount paid to miners by the number of transactions, and then compare it to a typical processing fee charged by a traditional payment platform.

Re: (Score:3)

by DrMrLordX ( 559371 )

Not really true, even Ethereum can achieve much higher txn rates with L2s. Qubic will have insanely high txn rates if it doesn't already.

The technology is there, but nobody has tied it together into a package that's suitable for storefronts or shoppers.

Re: (Score:2)

by DrMrLordX ( 559371 )

Not really. It depends on the blockchain. L2s on Ethereum have made things pretty cheap, and there are dedicated blockchains that are even cheaper (but don't necessarily have smart contract or even stablecoin functionality).

If all you do is look at Ethereum L1 or Bitcoin transfers then yes it's very expensive.

It's a pyramid scheme, not a payment system. (Score:2)

by denzacar ( 181829 )

People on the pyramid keep pushing it hoping to cash out by dumping their debt onto a greater fool.

Re: Ugh, paywall (Score:2)

by anonymouscoward52236 ( 6163996 )

VISA would be more expensive if you got to claim the long legal stick they get to weild for free. (Well, by tax payer dollars...) Even the threat costs something, if you divided it out.

Great (Score:2)

by Comboman ( 895500 )

So now, idiots will be able to run up credit card debt to "invest" in crypto. Even casinos aren't that irresponsible.

Re: (Score:2)

by supremebob ( 574732 )

On the flip side, we usually know that we're approaching the peak of a market bubble when idiots start buying loads of whatever the investment flavor of the year is on margin.

Maybe this is the sign for smarter investors that it's time to think about selling before the inevitable crash happens?

Re:Great (Score:4, Informative)

by toddz ( 697874 )

It's a debit card so you need money in the bank account first. But in general I agree with the sentiment. This also gives criminals another path to empty your bank account into crypto.

Re: (Score:2)

by Zocalo ( 252965 )

Yeah, very specific there. Under EU and UK financial rules (not sure about the elsewhere, but I assume it'll be similar in most sensible economies), *credit* card providers are fully liable for any purchases made in good faith with bad actors, whereas with debit cards it's much more caveat emptor, which basically translates as the wild west in cryptoland. Don't expect all that much support, and certainly not much (if any) of your money back, if you get scammed.

Visa and Coinbase will, of course, still g

Re: (Score:2)

by gweihir ( 88907 )

It is debit cards. Visa is not _that_ stupid.

And we as a country have learned nothing. (Score:2)

by nightflameauto ( 6607976 )

We use debt to purchase non-existent bullshit, it crashes the entire economy. We throw taxpayer money at the investors and the business sector to prop them up through the mess they made. We wait a while, then we use debt to buy up non-existent bullshit, it cashes the entire economy. We throw taxpayer money at the investors and the business sector to prop them up through the mess they made. We wait a while, then we use debt to buy up non-existent bullshit, it cashes the entire economy.

2008 doesn't seem all t

Re: (Score:2)

by gweihir ( 88907 )

Well, if Trump gets elected, it will be interesting to see whether he even gets through 4 years without a major economic crash...

Meanwhile, in Norway and Sweden... (Score:2)

by denzacar ( 181829 )

Governments are realizing that the whole "cashless economy" thing [1]may not work in a world where hostile actors can attack and destroy the underlying infrastructure. [theguardian.com]

If your "money" depends on such fragile systems as electricity, internet and software running on top of them - all stacked up, inverted-pyramid-like, on top of each other - that is not a functional medium of exchange.

That is a balancing act waiting to crash.

[1] https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/oct/30/sweden-and-norway-rethink-cashless-society-plans-over-russia-security-fears

Cue the attacks (Score:2)

by gweihir ( 88907 )

I wonder how long it will take until this gets used in attacks.

No they don't (Score:2)

by rsilvergun ( 571051 )

We have been through this before and the way blockchains work they are too slow to do anything in real time. Inevitably there's some scheme going on in the background and it inevitably falls apart because cryptocurrency prices are too volatile so by the time the actual transaction is settled the actual value of the currency could be who knows what.

Visa has done this a few times when the value of Bitcoin has been trending up and they think they can get away with it for a little while but they inevitably

tulips (Score:2)

by groobly ( 6155920 )

I have a great deal on tulips for you.

"Eligible debit cards" (Score:2)

by 93 Escort Wagon ( 326346 )

So Coinbase has its own Visa-branded debit card. Just say that - stop with this typically shady "let's pretend this is some broad mainstream initiative" crap like we always see from the coin bros.

It is indeed desirable to be well descended, but the glory belongs to
our ancestors.
-- Plutarch