The new Visa credit card will offer Bitcoin rewards rather than airline miles or cash.

Visa and BlockFi to launch Bitcoin rewards credit card as adoption grows
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Visa and BlockFi are teaming up to introduce a modern credit card that rewards users with Bitcoin (BTC), setting the stage for wider mainstream adoption of digital currency.

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BlockFi, a New York-based startup specializing in crypto-backed loans and savings accounts, announced the partnership on Tuesday. As Bloomberg reported, the new credit card will reward purchases with Bitcoin rather than airline miles or other cashback rewards. Cardholders will be eligible to receive 1.5% of their purchases back in BTC

Bank & Trust will issue the card, which carries a $200 annual fee.

Although the credit card will be convenient to the public in early 2021, BlockFi account holders will be able to sign up beforehand.

BlockFi is “delighted to include credit cards to our collection of products and expand Bitcoin’s accessibility to a broader set of consumers,” said Zac Prince, founder and CEO of the startup.

The BlockFi partnership is part of Visa’s Fintech Fast Track Program, which “aims to speed up integrating” with the credit card structure. Terry Angelos, senior vice president and universal head of fintech at Visa, said the goal of the fast track program is to help innovative companies “scale with efficiency.”

This isn’t Visa’s initial invasion into cryptocurrency. Earlier this year, the credit card company partnered with digital startup Fold to provide a debit card that earns crypto-based rewards.

More ordinarily, Visa has described a constructive vision for digital currency adoption — reversing an earlier, more unfavorable attitude. As Cointelegraph has reported, Visa’s developing stance on crypto is to establish that it provides its leadership pace in the payments market. Currently, there are more than 25 cryptocurrency wallets connected to Visa’s systems.

The credit card company is also encouraging to define regulations toward digital assets around the world, comprising working with the World Economic Forum to develop recommendations on the use of central bank digital currencies.