Wirex Becomes Principal Member of Visa Network in Europe

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22 Dec, 2020, 11:00 GMT

LONDON, Dec. 22, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading payments platform, Wirex, has become a principal member of Visa in Europe, a highly respected achievement for the London-based business with ambitious plans for 2021.

Having successfully completed Visa's FinTech Fast Track Programme, Wirex have secured the sought after principal membership from the global payments company. Principal membership will allow Wirex to issue Visa cards themselves, offer new innovative products, and apply for additional licences.

The announcement comes at a pivotal time for the digital economy, with Bitcoin recently hitting its all time high^¹ and a series of large industry players recently showing support for cryptocurrency.

Wirex already offers their services to over 3 million people across the EEA and APAC regions, and research shows the use of crypto is continuing to grow^². Wirex themselves have experienced a 271% increase in the number of crypto exchanges on their platform compared to this time last year.^³

"Digital currencies have the potential to extend the value of digital payments to a greater number of people and places," said Cuy Sheffield, Senior Director and Head of Cryptocurrency, Visa. "We're excited to work with innovative Fintechs like Wirex and enable their customers to use digital currencies at more than 61 million merchants on the Visa network."

Pavel Matveev, CEO and Co-Founder of Wirex, said that: "It's been our core goal to unite the traditional and digital economies, and collaborations with trusted global payments companies such as Visa are making this possible by providing straight and cost-effective solutions for utilising crypto in the everyday. It's no easy feat to achieve principal membership and will present numerous opportunities to continue developing a revolutionary product."

Wirex have had a long-standing partnership with Visa, having worked together to ensure Wirex was the first company in the world to issue a contactless crypto-enabled debit card in 2014^⁴. The card enables customers to seamlessly spend up to 20 traditional and cryptocurrencies at over 61 million locations globally. Linked up to a next-generation app where they can be bought, held, exchanged or sold, the company was also the first to develop a cryptocurrency rewards scheme, Cryptoback™, that rewards users up to 1.5% in Bitcoin for any purchases made with their debit card.

After a record-breaking crowdfunding campaign in October that raised nearly $5 million (US), the announcement rounds off a hugely successful year for the SBI group-backed company. With an overhaul of their rewards programme and launch in the US imminent, it's thought that 2021 will be an even more extraordinary year for Wirex.

Notes to editors:

About Wirex

Wirex is a worldwide digital payment platform and regulated institution that has forged new rules in the digital payments space. In 2015, the firm developed the world's first crypto-enabled payment card that gives users the ability to seamlessly spend crypto and traditional currencies in real life.

Wirex was created in 2014 by CEOs and co-founders Pavel Matveev and Dmitry Lazarichev, who identified the need to open up the esoteric world of cryptocurrencies and make digital money accessible for everyone. With the core aim of making it as easy as possible to use digital assets in everyday life, Wirex provides a trusted and cost-effective service for crypto and traditional currency transactions by incorporating the next generation of payments infrastructure integrated with cryptocurrency blockchains.

With over three million customers across 130 countries, the company offers secure accounts that allow customers to easily store, buy and exchange multiple currencies instantly at the best live rates on one centralised mobile app. Quick and simple money transfer options are available, as well as the freedom to spend 150+ traditional and cryptocurrencies in more than 61 million locations around the world using the Wirex card.

Wirex continues to develop the product in line with market developments, whilst adhering to regional regulations and securing appropriate licensing where it exists. A proven industry pioneer, Wirex introduced the world's first bitcoin reward programme, Cryptoback™, which earns cardholders up to 1.5% back in bitcoin for every in-store transaction they make. They also launched their own native utility token, WXT, which entitles holders to rewards and incentives such as heavily-discounted fees and higher Cryptoback™ rewards.

Wirex is based in London, with offices in Singapore, Kyiv, Tokyo, Toronto, Dallas, Dublin and Atlanta. With over $4bn worth of transactions processed already and rapid expansion into new territories, including an upcoming launch in the US and Japan, Wirex is uniquely placed to support and promote the mass adoption of a cashless society through creative solutions.

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