Mastercard has announced the launch of a new category of debit cards that will come with the option to be customisable with non-fungible tokens (NFTs). Holders of Bored Apes and Moonbirds NFTs will be able to add their avatars onto the payment card. For now, only limited NFT series get to feature on the Mastercard but this programme could later add support for other series of digital collectibles. Mastercard has partnered with the European cryptocurrency exchange platform hi to make these cards available to its Gold members.
These special cards will allow its holders to spend in fiat, stablecoins or any cryptocurrency in their possession.
“Not only do the NFT cards look amazing, this is a great way for people to show which online community they belong to, but in the real world. The flexibility to spend fiat, stablecoins or other crypto, combined with attractive financial and lifestyle rewards, makes us confident that our card is a game-changer in the market,” Sean Rach, Co-founder of hi, said in an official post.
Back in June, Mastercard inked deals with a total of seven new partners in order to open NFT access via traditional card payments to help drive NFT commerce.
Mastercard’s new partners include metaverse player The Sandbox along with Immutable X, Candy Digital, Mintable, Spring, Nifty Gateway, and MoonPay.
“As consumer interest in crypto and NFTs continues to grow, we are committed to making them an accessible payments choice for the communities who wish to use them,” said says Christian Rau, Senior Vice President, Crypto, and Fintech Enablement at Mastercard.
CryptoPunks, Goblins, and Azukis are other NFT series that can get featured on the Mastercard.
NFT owners will be asked to verify that they own the NFT in order to apply for card customisation.