Coinbase has announced a cutting edge partnership which will enable crypto to be spent with a host of big name businesses. Working alongside WeGift, the partnership will mean traders can transfer their crypto onto a gift card and spend their funds with Tesco, Uber, Amazon and a number of other well known retailers and services.
The new gift card boasts a number of other benefits too. Users will incur no Coinbase withdrawal fees and in fact a bonus of up to 5% will be added to gift cards as an extra incentive. Zeeshan Feroz, CEO of Coinbase UK, commented that the gift cards will enable customers “greater flexibility and control over how they use their crypto.”
The news will be seen as a big development in a sector which is seeking to find mechanisms to enable crypto to be used in day-to-day transactions, not just traded on exchanges and hoarded in wallets. Though the cards will only be available in Australia and in selected European countries at first, it is anticipated the service will be rolled out more widely if – or when – it proves successful.
For many crypto traders, Coinbase is the gateway to the world of digital currencies. Founded in 2012, Coinbase was originally developed to enable the buying and selling of Bitcoin through bank transfers. After major investments from Union Square Ventures, Ribbit Capital and others, the site had grown to serve no less than one million users by 2014. After further investments and some high-level partnerships with the likes of Overstock, Dell and Expedia, Coinbase launched a new professional exchange, soon to be rebranded as Global Digital Asset Exchange, or GDAX. Today, Coinbase is a market leader, and offers its services in 32 countries worldwide.
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