Bitcoin Forum

Coinbase has presented what it cases is the first U.S.- issued bitcoin charge card, the Shift Card. This is a VISA check card that permits Coinbase clients in 24 U.S. states to spend bitcoin online and disconnected from the net at more than 38 million shippers around the world, the organization reported on its site.
https://www.zapchain.com/a/l/coinbase-launches-first-bitcoin-debit-card/UsLEu1NC9e

i'm think so,but i'm late to think about that,and i hope its a good new,and about this section,i just want to share somewhere,i'm sorry for unhappy.

Nice to see another exchange hitting debit cards the more places that do this the better and simpler it makes using and paying with Bitcoin far easier than having to trade or sell coins.

yes me too,and as coinbase user like me,its a good thing. lets hope bitcoin far easier as you think.
i love this debit card design,look elegant and luxury.would be my pleasure to get this one sometime.

I really hope this comes to europe too!

This has been mentioned already.
I believe there is a thread in the press sections with a lot of responses and reactions already.

i dont know that post before i post this,and i think i post this at same time with someone else,or just late for a minute.
and i think not everyone open press section  ;)

ftfy

Lmfao thx for that. :P

To be honest if it is automatic like my other card, then so be it, I will end up using coinbaes. If they want me to provide a tun of documents to use then forget it I like my identity to be kept private.. I have a few BTC debit cards and 2 of them are automatic, so if I buy something it trades it for me and that exchange sells it, converts it to fiat, and allows me to process transaction or I can set it to fiat value and have that and sells again if I need to. Other one I have I have to load it with bitcoin, sell the coin in house, then have fiat funds, but their fees are shocking. Wonder what coinbase will set their fees at. Less fees = more user base and no doubt me using. If not then meh good luck with the adventure on them having the service. So many poping up and it will be a market in its own soon. Best low fee wins.

Private identity, coinbase, and visa debit card are not often all used in the same sentence. Pretty sure KYC will be mandatory for this, and it is starting in only some states of the US.

In some cases yes also depends on that exchange or service offering them. The ones I am on wanted basic information like address so recent utility bill or something of proof of address not like ID such as drivers licence and or passport. Sites asking me for such documents I hate as can use for other means and I had that happen a number of years back using some exchange to get approved on a bunch of things and about 8 months after odd things went on. And eventually had to get everything canceled and re ordered and sorted out. So despite how secure their site is unless their in my country and I can actually go down in person, speak to someone in person and fill out forms I wont submit shit.

I think I will stay with Xapo. The people at Coinbase are to strict and you have to jump through a lot of security tests, stopping just before a Anal probe, before you can use their system. The 3rd parties have too much influence on your private financial matters.

Xapo offer a more pleasurable experience and lower fees. ^hmf^

That's awesome news! More people are going to join BTC's ecosystem and use it more frequently!
Exchanges are the future banks.

lol at this guy's above comment.

i think they not going to join btc ecosystem but going to convert btc to USD because when u try to use debit card it'll automatically convert your btc to USD, but besides of it,bitcoin debit card really help to make payment made easy

This is country limited as far as i know this is only available in u.s
I don't think it works for the rest of the world.

i agree with you,on this sentence "Exchanges are the future banks." exchange will grow like bank,maybe they controlled bitcoin soon,we all know that exchange have a big amount of bitcoin.

I think that that is happening already bit exchanges are manipulating the bitcoin price, at least last time when the price reached 450+ it was supposed that big chinese exchanges are pumping the price, but the use of these debit cards i don't think will impact the price.

you guy dont not worry,i think its will come to europe,soon..

yes,its have been happen.i agree with that,exchange can control or manipilating bitcoin price,but they cannot do that as they want,because it will impact to their own self. yes i dont think debit card will impact the price,its a some way to advertise bitcoin.

They will not be the future banks, but rather the future "forex traders". Banks will always excist in some form for safekeeping your money and giving loans for buying houses and stuff.

That is something I don't see exchanges do tbh.

i think not, how they are going to regulate it for abroad jurisdiction? when the court of europe view bitcoin in a different way with vat free etc.. instead in the usa it isn't vat free

and this is only one of the problem, there are more i'm sure, i can't think about now

The is not the first debit/credit card. Xapo launched a debit card many months ago. Any way, it is good for the adoption of bitcoin.

Yes, I am sure it will. Just like they have just allowed European customers to buy bitcoins up to the the 500 euros in Bitcoin value. It took a while to get this option working after the US customers had it for a moment.

This is how you introduce a new service. You start slowly and then you start spreading out. I mean it's in their interest to cover as large market as they possibly can.

yes i know,but this user not agree with me and you.
Amph :
i think not, how they are going to regulate it for abroad jurisdiction? when the court of europe view bitcoin in a different way with vat free etc.. instead in the usa it isn't vat free

and this is only one of the problem, there are more i'm sure, i can't think about now

what you think about her comment?

yes we all know that,but it mean debit card fisrt for coinbase,not fisrt in the world.

i'm not a "her", but if they have already allowed european for small amount, then it might work, but for higher amount, i guess you need to verify or they are simply waiting that the euro zone regulate more bitcoin

as it is right now i can't see how they are allowing the movements of big funds for european

What bigger amounts? There is most likely to have a 400 euros or dollars daily limit, just like any other debit card in the world!

超级mmm

It's a fiat credit card branded by a company that exchanges Bitcoin. So what?  I have a Visa card branded by my insurance carrier, an airline and my alma mater. Any company can do that. They could take the credit card info for a card you currently hold, have you sign an agreement and debit/credit that card whenever you trade Bitcoin. They don't need a branded card to do it. That's just a gimmick.

http://imgur.com/download/RHOLT4Q/

I am a early user of Coinbase. I am very satisfy from this business. I have my bitcoins in this wallet and never had any problem during more than two years of being their customer. Some little problems were solved fast from their support. I'm sorry that in my country is not yet possible to buy and sell bitcoin from this wallet because has very good prices. I like their way to do business and the security which offer to all their customers.

Told (or better write) all the above qualities must be told that even that are not the firsts which offer this kind of service. I have read even other providers of such kind of cards. I don't know their credibility because what I am tell is only what I have read. So maybe not all of those are credible and for sure any of those are the credibility of the card issued by Coinbase (at least for me) but the fact to not being firsts is true.

This sounds like a fairy tale, until you buy one item at a site that they deem "unsuitable"  ::) Boom.... your account get suspended and you lose your coins. Let's say you transfer

coins via a mixer service to your account... ??? I am not a big fan of third party intermediaries anyway, because they call the shots and you have to take the damages. The KYC &

AML regulations governing Coinbase is ridiculous.  ::) 

Quick Review:  Just ordered the card and linked my coinbase account.  Very quick and simple.  Obviously they do take your info, so no privacy, but I don't get debit cards anonymously from my bank either, so no issue for me.  Got confirmation emails saying....

"Congratulations! Your Shift Card will arrive in the mail within the next 5-7 business days.

Our app is available for both iOS and Android. With the app, you'll be able to manage your card, view transactions, and get alerts to your mobile device. Please check it out if you haven't already! "

My first concern was that the Shift website was insanely limited with info.  The forum/discussion in Support was almost non-existent, and there appeared to be no attempt at responding to inquiries from Shift Staff.  I could not see any way to monitor my account activity (no links to this sort of thing anywhere). 

Based on my review of there web, and their earlier email, I was concerned I wouldn't be able to monitor anything without iOS/Android, which I do not use.  I posted in help forum - no response.  So I issued a Support Ticket - and response was Very quick and detailed.  The following was their reply. 

"The iOS/Android app is the only tool available to view and manage your Shift card, and at the moment there is no plan to introduce a web portal for this. Barring use of the Shift app, you can keep track of your spending by checking your Coinbase account for the transaction messages that we send along."

My primary concern here is that I have no notification capability built into the system to alert me of card use from Shift.  No emails, nothing.  This forces me to continually monitor my Coinbase account to see if there is any useage (possibly unauthorized).  This is a Major Flaw in my opinion for non iOS/Droid customers.  So be aware.

In addition, when I originally set up my account, the default limit was set to $1000 USD/day.  Since this was new, I didn't like that much access to my account, and the language led me to believe I could reset those amounts later, so I manualy changed my limits to a lower $300/day until I felt more comfortable with the process.  After setup, realizing I had limited account management, I also asked about my ability to change my daily limits later.  Below is the response...

"Because the daily limit you set during signup is linked to your secure Oauth Token, the only way to increase this is to remove+and re-download the shift app and go through the signup flow again. But, because you aren't actually using the app, we would need to take care of this from our end. If and when you need to increase this daily limit please just send us an email, and we'll delete your profile on our end, and you will then be able to signup again with an increased limit."

So be aware that whatever you set up as your Card Limit is PERMANENT.

I think everyone should also realize that this is a DEBIT Card, and familiarize and understand the liability issues.  Credid cards by law (in USA) have a maximum liability of $50, meaning if you challenge a fraudulent payment  that is the most you can get hit for.  Debit Cards take the actual funds immediately, and getting your money back can be time consuming/difficult.  My point being that using a Debit Card is inherently more risky than a Credit Card.  So I will be using this card very carefully in trusted environments. 

But with all of this said, before I have actually received the card - I am overall very ok with things so far.  I think that this next evolution in Bitcoin is to start USING it.   My paychecks go to my bank.  Normally I use a Credit Card and then pay it off via transferring from my bank account to my Credit Card Account.  I will now start adding the Shift/Coinbase Debit Card into my useage, and "Pay it off" monthly by replacing those Bitcoins spent with equal bitcoin purchases from my bank account each month, so that my base BTC balance remains the same.  So I slowly and carefully begin to migrate my spending habits to Bitcoin.  Small steps, but I hope everyone also makes this step.

Once I get card I will update with any issues in use.

Peace,
- david

NOT a Credit Card.  a DEBIT CARD.  Not a gimmick either.  If it were a simple gimmick, then everyone would be offering them.  This is a major entry into the US financial network.  Not simple, and not to be taken lightly.  It is a very big step into main stream use in the U.S.   One of the reasons I will watch this carefully is that if Bitcoin ever actually begins to become accepted in the U.S. - then you are going to see it begin to takeoff.  This is a small but substantial step.... integrating bitcoin into the existing financial network. 

Also - to be considered is the fact that Debit Cards under U.S. law are much more risky to use than Credit Cards.  As I said, a small step - but an important one.  I suggest serious U.S. Bitcoin users get a card, set a small limit ($100 - $500) daily use limit for safety and security sake - but start using it - IF you want to see your existing Bitcoins continue to rise in value - and one day actually explode in value.

Bitcoin will either die, or become a small-player / back-alley altcoin (as it is replaced by a fiatcoin that is already being worked on behind scenes), OR it will literally do the $10,000/$100,000/$1,000,000 Coin thing.  Integrated use into the system via this Debit Card step is a big step towards a $1,000,000 Bitcoin value.

The faster Bitcoin gets integrated, the harder it will be for any eventual Fiatcoin to dislodge it.   Use it or lose it.

Peace,
- david

This is a game changer for sure. Shift has been around for a few years as the card was in beta. You would think they would have had ample time to get regulatory approval in all states before rolling out to the general public. Right now the card can be shipped to less than half of US states.

Yeah, Zapo launched their debit card - which after 10 minutes became not available in the US.  Totally different thing here - the Coinbase card is actually available.  Zapo was just a bunch of hot air.  Their 'bank' in Gilbralter lied to Zapo about being able to issue to US - and then told them on the night of the launch that it couldn't be done.  So, Zapo doesn't issue cards in the US and Coinbase does.  I'd say these are two very different situations.  Zapo = total fail.

Half is better than none :)  I'm just glad my state was in there.  I also think it is a good indication that this is a serious development.  I would actually be more worried if it was released in all 50 states.  U.S. Financial system is a disjointed mess - and very perilous if not approached carefully.

BTW - anyone know status of Coinbase's approval request to be granted a NY bitlicense.  When Circle was approved, word was Coinbase had applied and was soon to be.  Haven't heard anything yet, or did I just miss it.

It's not a game changer it's a nothing changer. Read and learn.

http://www.yourownbrokerage.com/solutions/consulting-solutions/branded-debit-cards/

I'm not sure you understand.  Where is the amazing knowledge that you are pointing to?  Is it that most Debit Cards are simply rebranded offerings that all lead back to Visa/Mastercard?  THAT is your amazing insight?

Almost everyone knows that.  It's nothing new.

What is new is a Debit Card that is directly linked to Bitcoin.  And that it instantly calculates a USD purchase, translates it into Bitcoin, takes that amount of Bitcoin out of a Bitcoin account (NOT a US Dollar based bank account) and finalizes a transaction, and you walk out of a Walmart, a Target, or your local grocer with product in hand.  And you used your BITCOIN account to do it.

Look - I get the fact that you are a Bitcoin purist, a fiat system anarchist, etc etc.   I wish you well, and honestly support your endgame.  But bitcoin will not defeat fiat until it replaces fiat.  To replace fiat money, you need to be able to USE "bitcoin money".

For all intents and purposes, Bitcoin is for the most part UNSPENDABLE.  It sits in our variety of wallets, and everyone watches the price and dreams of being bitcoin millionaires.  Until people are USING and SPENDING bitcoi on a daily basis (and I mean Millions of People daily for daily everyday purchases) then the dream of becoming bitcoin millionaires will remain just that an unrealized dream. 

This Coinbase/Shift Debit Card is a step towards realizing the dream.  Use it or Lose it.

Peace,
- david

I understand what it does. It's converting a different currency (Bitcoin) to local fiat and using the ACH/EFT system as the transfer method to make purchases. That's a shitty workaround to put banks back in charge. I'd rather not use btc for purchases and just use my bank debit card instead.

Here's how stupid this is to me:

Use an ACH/EFT transfer to buy Bitcoin from Coinbase, place in my account there and pay a fee.

Make a purchase at a store that doesn't accept Bitcoin and the business pays an ACH/EFT fee.

Coinbase uses the funds from my Bitcoin account, converts them to fiat and uses the ACH/EFT system to credit the merchant.


What a major cluster fuck. Why don't you just avoid the middle man and use the debit card you have in your pocket right now because you sure aren't paying anything using the blockchain?

Gotcha - I understand where you are coming from now.  I thought you were a bitcoin purist.  But you are a bitcoin hater?  Either way your particular vision won't hold.  You don't understand the concept of change.  It's slow, gradual.  The "New" thing you are transitioning into is never "better" in the beginning.  The "Concept" might be - but it takes work, faith, patience.  And along the way progress encounters opposition - usually in the simple form of lies.  And the lies usually come from either haters of the NEW, or purists that want to control the NEW and make it some sort of idealistic flying rainbow colored unicorn that farts money as it zooms overhead, and everyone is happy, and there is no war, nor disease, nor poverty - no one has to work, and life is lovely and injustice is magically forever not an issue anymore.

Not sure if you are the hater or the money farting unicorn - but you are a misleading liar.  With the Shift Debit Card I am charged to open the account.  I can then use my card any place I use my current bank debit card (except it comes directly from my coinbase bitcoin account).  I am not charged any fees, except for the very reasonable approximate 1% exchange fee when I initially Purchase Bitcoins out of my fiat bank account.

Now, since the price of bitcoin (For Me) has gone UP for my holdings approximately A HELL OF A LOT, and since that "Hell of a Lot" far exceeds the transaction fees I initially encountered, I am, based simply on 1st Grade Math, a very happy camper.  :)

And I expect over time my grin will widen, and the pearly shine of my teeth blind you :)

So anyway - which is it?  Are you a bitcoin hater, or an idealistic lover of money farting unicorns?

Not to mention Shift card should be reliable at US merchant terminals. Bitcoin debit cards issued by foreign banks can be problematic.

Question Authority isn't disputing that it's a debit card, he's saying that it's backed by Visa and that the phrasing of the promotion is clever. This is great news but not as exciting as Coinbase creating its own card, without the support of the big bad credit card company / fiat financial institution!

In fact, this is really a card from VISA called Shift that's also compitable with bitcoin using Coinbase. --Does the way I phrased that make it sound appealing? Not nearly as much as "Coinbase releases debit card! (oh yeah, it's backed by VISA)"

At some point (particularly in the US) we should expect bitcoin companies to have to work with traditional financial institutions.

I think the biggest part of this news is that VISA is acknowledging that bitcoin is a legit currency with transaction volume great enough for them to take notice.

My question - how much are the fees VISA is charging merchants for using this card when a bitcoin payment is involved?

Yes.  Once I get my card in about a week I will do a good test run.  I will buy gas, groceries, shop at Walmart, etc.... and I will post about the experience(s).

The only thing I will stay away from is large (Amazon) or tiny (fly by nights I don't know) Internet transactions.  Debit Cards are NOT made for internet transactions due to the increased liability risks that using a Debit Card has (as opposed to a Credit Card that has much greater liability/fraud protections.)  For example - if you buy 10 things from Amazon, then your card can be split out into many transactions via many vendors - even though you give the card once on a single transaction.  That is how my Credit Card was fraudulently accessed recently.  $1500 worth of bad purchases - but I disputed and it was reversed.  Because it was never directly linked to funds (like Debit Card) - I didn't lose access to any of my actual funds - not even for a second.  So I will be putting tighter spending controls on this Shift-Coinbase/Bitcoin Debit Card.

Debit Cards for local onsite purchases.  Credit Cards for Internet transactions.  

I think the next step will be to have a real Credit Card that will directly accept balance payoffs in Bitcoin.  When I see that happen - I am transferring everything I own into bitcoin.  I am sincerely hoping this Debit Card thing works with few hiccups, some of my concerns already outlined in earlier post.  But it is a start.

Peace,
- david

It is my understanding/experience that VISA charges a set fee/percentage.  Visa Cards are accepted EVERYWHERE that a Visa Card is accepted.  That means ALL Visa base cards, whether they are branded, unbranded, bitcoin, USD, etc...

If you are a merchant with the ability to accept Visa Cards, then each use of a Visa card costs you "X".  "X" = "X" whether it is linked to a Bitcoin Exchange account or not.  That would all be taken into account and calculated in the Profit/Loss business plan of the Company (Shift Payments).  So that is Shift's business, and not yours.  It doesn't apply to you, me, or anyone else.  Nor is it a  factor in whether or not a person uses the card.  It has ZERO applicability to a User.

If you buy from Amazon you really should be using Purse.io (https://bitcoinnewsmagazine.com/use-purse-io-to-buy-from-amazon-using-bitcoin/). I use it all the time to buy with bitcoin and get free Amazon Prime shipping. Never had a problem with the service.

Coinbase is not the first to launch a Bitcoin Debit card. There are a lot of other options besides Coinbase. And many of these other options are far most cheaper than the options offered by Coinbase. An worst, with Coinbase the user needs to go through a verification process.

You don't get it. I actually use just Bitcoin to pay for something almost every day. If you use this card you're not using Bitcoin. You are using the current banking system.

Actually, I have a coinbase account that contains bitcoins.  Those bitcoins are linked to the current banking system via the new Debit Card.  So bitcoin has just been integrated into the current banking system.  When I use the card, I will be using hte current banking system AND I will be using Bitcoin.

And you will still be flying around on a rainbow colored Unicorn that farts free money and sprinkles happy dust everywhere.  Oh, wait... thats just your fantasy :)   LOL

Real world vs. Immature Fantasy world.  Not really a tough choice for most people.

PS... Bitcoin has been integrated into the banking system.  Thought it was worth saying again.  Wish I could be a fly on the wall - watching your face twitch.

You can get bitcoin debit card at CCedk,nano technology,thare is yet another one  https://www.coinizy.com/ (https://www.coinizy.com/)
And you can get prepaid at https://www.advcash.com/en/ (https://www.advcash.com/en/) and at coinomat.So you have already planty of options in Europe

Well when impacting them self they have gain profit before dumping the price, but sadly the truth is that they have a good power to control the bitcoin price, actually the price is keeping increasing so i expect the price will reach $400 if not this month probably in December.

yes dude,we all know that coinbase is not first,there was xapo,bit-x,e-coin and maybe many more bitcoin debit card,but i think it mean "first" is for coinbase it self,not the first in the world,we all also know coinbase is a big exchange and wallet,it can be one of advertise strategy to make it popular.

"sadly the truth is that they have a good power to control the bitcoin price, actually the price is keeping increasing"
how can we avoid it?or at least we can take profit same time like when do it?is we have tobe a pro trader?i'm really corious and want be like them.

We can't avoid it man, we are little to 'manipulate' or change the way of the bitcoin price chart, if you want to be like them you should have a lot of money and a huge volume of bitcoin to affect the price.

Not sure "wanting to be like them" is such a worthy calling.  Brokers of evil?  But banks/exchanges/central reserves etc.... they are a part of human civilization.  They aren't going anywhere.  Sometimes you have Good laws, rules, guidance, and the world or community or nation in which you live is happier, fairer.  And in historical cycles evil creeps in.  THAT would be the current situation.

All that is going on now is that the global financial pie is being redivided, and there are some new players.  The bitcoin purists are under the disillusion that somehow bitcoin will "Change the System".  Eh, a little maybe, but ultimately its just another money.  The value of money will always be subject to manipulation and change.  And those with the most of it will always have the most Direct influence.

But those with ideas and a loud enough voice (or sword) will always be called upon to to their best to ensure that cycles of evil are kept to a short minimum, and that cycles of good always follow and are as long as possible in duration.

Exchanges are the new banks, and yes, there are those with great amounts of bitcoin, and who have learned through great experience, how to manipulate the value.  Right now you have players like Coinbase who would like to see Bitcoin go up.  You have the huge fiat banks that are playing both sides - they KNOW digital currency is coming, and they want a Fiat Coin they can design themselves, and in doing so design built in manipulations.  But they also are hedging their bets and putting some into Bitcoin.

And NONE of them want Bitcoin to explode in value, because that would be the death of bitcoin.  Coinbase type exchanges want bitcoin to slowly but steadily increase in value.  Fiat banks want that to be extremely slow (not slow enough to kill it) but slow enough so that they can eventually kill it once they have a Fiat Coin ready.

But the key is not so much the value - but the expansion of the USE of bitcoin.  And as a by product, the more it is used, the more it will increase in value.  Coinbase and other "pure" bitcoin exchanges are focused on that patient but winning strategy.  And that ultimately demands that Bitcoin be spendable by mainstream citizens, easily.

Eventually Bitcoin will become easier to use as a DIRECT BITCOIN payment, but the Bridge to making that a reality is to move it into commerce via these Debit Cards, eventually Credit Cards you can make installment payments on in Bitcoin, and then finally the mass acceptance of Retailers (which will require a huge rollout of across the board technology upgrades).   But those upgrades are extremely costly, and they just did one.  You can't force the adoption, so a Bridge that expands Bitcoin NOW is needed, and that is the Debit Card.

+ people need to start ACCEPTING Bitcoin for all non-retail invoiceable business transactions.  I mean, every business person who believes in bitcoin, should be learning to create Bitcoin Addresses to match their invoicing system - and then putting that as a payment option on their bills.  And then you announce promininently that you have started accepting Bitcoin - on your website, and on your facebook pages, etc...

And people will say, "Ehhh?  What's Bitcoin?" and the conversation will grow.

Times getting closer.  Use it or lose it.

Peace,
- david

Their charges may be higher when we compare with Indian Debt Cards. So using their Debt Card in India is very expensive.

this is a good news,i'm a coinbase user,and never disapointed with coinbase,and i really hope this debit card will succes and becoma a good service.
is there on this forum anyone use it?

It is always better to compare this debit card to their competitives for example with xapo or bit-x, i know coinbase is much popular but what rates will be applied, should we convert bitcoin to usd before using etc.