Share this article
Coinbase Becomes First 'Pure' Crypto Firm Approved as Visa Principal Member
The San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange will have the power to issue payment cards thanks to its new status.
Updated May 9, 2023, 3:06 a.m. Published Feb 19, 2020, 11:30 a.m.
Make us preferred on Google
Coinbase, the San Francisco-based cryptocurrency exchange, has been made a Visa principal member.
STORY CONTINUES BELOW
Don't miss another story.Subscribe to the Crypto Daybook Americas Newsletter today. See all newsletters
Announcing the news on its blog Wednesday, the firm said the news marks it as the "first pure-play crypto company" to be approved by the credit card giant.
Coinbase has been working with Visa since 2019 when it launched its Coinbase Card in the UK. The debit card allows users to spend cryptocurrency as cash anywhere Visa is accepted. The card has since been made available in 29 markets with 10 cryptocurrencies supported.
Principal members of Visa are financial institutions authorized to issue some types of payment cards. In theory, Coinbase could issue cards to other crypto companies, though it's not clear if it plans to use that power immediately.
Discussing the Visa approval, Coinbase said that "membership will enable us to offer more features for Coinbase Card customers; from additional services to support in more markets — all elements that will help to evolve and enrich the cryptocurrency payment experience."
According to Forbes, the status was granted to Coinbase in December but has just been announced.
Больше для вас
KuCoin captured a record share of centralised exchange volume in 2025, with more than $1.25tn traded as its volumes grew faster than the wider crypto market.
Что нужно знать:
- KuCoin recorded over $1.25 trillion in total trading volume in 2025, equivalent to an average of roughly $114 billion per month, marking its strongest year on record.
- This performance translated into an all-time high share of centralised exchange volume, as KuCoin’s activity expanded faster than aggregate CEX volumes, which slowed during periods of lower market volatility.
- Spot and derivatives volumes were evenly split, each exceeding $500 billion for the year, signalling broad-based usage rather than reliance on a single product line.
- Altcoins accounted for the majority of trading activity, reinforcing KuCoin’s role as a primary liquidity venue beyond BTC and ETH at a time when majors saw more muted turnover.
- Even as overall crypto volumes softened mid-year, KuCoin maintained elevated baseline activity, indicating structurally higher user engagement rather than short-lived volume spikes.
Больше для вас
Stablecoins moved $35 trillion last year but only 1% of it was for 'real world' payments
While stablecoins settled around $35 trillion last year, only around 1% of that represented genuine payments like remittances and payroll, a new report found.
Что нужно знать:
- Stablecoins processed more than $35 trillion in transactions last year, but only about 1% of that reflected real-world payments, a report by McKinsey and Artemis Analytics found.
- The study estimated that roughly $390 billion in genuine stablecoin payments, such as vendor payments, payrolls, remittances and capital markets settlements.
- Despite rapid growth and increasing interest from traditional payment firms like Visa and Stripe, true stablecoin payments still account for just a tiny fraction of the more than $2 quadrillion global payments market, the report said.
Top Stories
