The partnership allows FTX Exchange users in 40 countries to easily spend their bitcoins and cryptocurrencies at any merchant that accepts Visa cards.
FTX is launching bitcoin and cryptocurrency-backed debit cards in 40 countries.
The exchange has partnered with Visa and will focus on Latin America, Asia and Europe.
Despite the bear market, Visa believes bitcoin holders still want to use BTC for payments.Visa has partnered with one of the world’s leading cryptocurrency exchanges, FTX, to launch bitcoin and cryptocurrency debit cards, according to a CNBC report.
The offer will be available to FTX users in more than 40 countries, with a focus on Latin America, Asia and Europe.
Visa, along with its competitors in the market, continues to assert that bitcoin and cryptocurrency users still want to use their holdings as a medium of exchange, even amid a bear market downturn.
“While stocks are down, there is still a steady interest in cryptocurrencies,” said Visa Chief Financial Officer Vasant Prabhu, according to the report.
Debit cards, which are already available in the US, simply connect to the FTX platform, allowing users to spend digital assets in their wallets without the need to withdraw assets from the exchange platform.
“We don’t have a position as a company on what the value of cryptocurrency should be, or if it’s a good thing in the long run — as long as people have things they want to buy, we want to make it easy.” said Prabhu.
Visa’s main competitor, Mastercard, has also partnered with several different companies to offer debit cards that support bitcoin and cryptocurrencies. American Express has also expressed interest in offering a similar product, though its chief executive said it likely wouldn’t be “any time soon”.
