Bitcoin debit cards combine the best of both traditional and digital currency systems. The ease of swiping the card at a PoS, as it has been done for decades is now combined with the advanced digital currency of this generation. Bitcoin debit cards are one way of paying for goods and services at any place with a PoS machine irrespective of whether they accept digital currency or not. Coinbase now offers the same convenience to its customers with the newly launched Shift Card.
The new Shift bitcoin debit card was launched earlier on Friday by Coinbase, the leading bitcoin wallet and exchange service provider. Powered by Visa, the Shift bitcoin debit card is issued for US customers for a fee of $10. Once registered, the user will pay the required issuance fee with bitcoin and wait for the card to be delivered at their doorstep. Announcement of the latest product launch was reported by Coinbase on its official blog.
According to the blogpost, Coinbase’s Shift Card is currently available for residents of 24 US States. Shift Card holders can use it just like any Visa debit card for both online and offline shopping. In addition, there won’t be any transaction charges on payments made using the new bitcoin debit card, which makes owning it even more exciting.
Coinbase has launched Shift at the right time, during the holiday season. The company can expect a good response from those who would like to do their thanksgiving and holiday shopping directly with bitcoin instead of converting it into fiat currency over a bitcoin exchange or searching for outlets and websites that accept bitcoin.
Coinbase is not the first company to introduce bitcoin debit cards, as there are many such instruments for bitcoin transaction already available . However, it will definitely be an added advantage for Coinbase customers.
Reference:
Introducing the Shift Card - Coinbase Blog
