Brazil’s users can enjoy services like up to 8% cashback on select cryptocurrencies, including Bitcoin with the new Bitcoin rewards card.
Binance and Mastercard are about to launch a prepaid Bitcoin rewards card that will let its customers make purchases with cryptocurrency in Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, to “broaden the connection between traditional finance and crypto.”
New and existing Binance users in Brazil holding a valid national ID card will be able to use the rewards card to purchase goods and pay bills with select cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin across Mastercard’s network of 90 million merchants in brick-and-mortar stores and online, according to a statement from Binance.
The Binance Card in Brazil is currently in beta testing. The card is expected to be widely available in the coming weeks, making Brazil the second Latin American country to have a crypto rewards card with Binance and Mastercard, after Argentina.
The rewards card also comes with other bonuses, including up to 8% cashback in crypto for eligible purchases, and an ATM withdrawal fee of zero.
“Brazil is an extremely relevant market for Binance and we will continue to invest in new services for local users, as well as contributing to the development of the blockchain and crypto ecosystem in the country,” said Guilherme Nazar, general manager at Binance for Brazil.
Brazil’s rewards card is just like Argentina’s – where user’s crypto funds will be converted to fiat currency in real time upon each transaction. All payments using crypto with the card are subject to a 0.9% conversion fee.
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Cardholders in Brazil can use the crypto rewards card to pay in 14 different currencies – including the Brazilian Real (BRL), Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Binance’s BNB and BUSD tokens. Binance has plans to increase how many cryptocurrencies are supported by the card, and hopes to bring the rewards card to more countries across the globe.
In using services, cardholders can specify their preferred currencies to pay in, where payments in BRL are zero fee, not including third-party services and network fees.
Last year, Brazil’s congressed passed a bill to make cryptocurrency payments legal within the country – but has not yet made digital assets legal tender.
“Brazilians are eager to embrace crypto beyond an investment asset,” Marcelo Tangioni, Mastercard’s country manager for Brazil, said.
The 2022 Mastercard New Payments Index, a global index with more than 35,000 respondents, found that Brazil ranks amongst the top markets in crypto interest internationally: with 49% of Brazil’s consumer base having at least dabbling in one crypto-related activity within the past year, in comparison to the global average of 41%.
