Versión Español
Español Argentinean start-up Xapo announced on Wednesday the first ever bitcoin debit card, the decentralized electronic currency. Bitcoin has been conquering markets that suffer under high transaction costs and exchange controls, such as exist in the South American country. Founded by local entrepreneur Wenceslao Casares and beginning in mid-2014, it will offer two versions of the card: a digital one free of change, and a physical one to use in shops worldwide for around US$15.
Bitcoin ATMs can already be found in several countries, but the debit card now opens up the possibility for any registered user with Xapo to use his account balance to buy products in any store with a Visa or MasterCard POS card reader.
“We are focused on creating a safer and easier way to use bitcoins, and our users were asking for a debit card,” says Casares.
Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency, a digital means of exchange that incorporates cryptographic technology to implement a secure and decentralized transaction system that does not depend on any central bank or issuing authority.
Source: La Nación.
