Everything we now own can be summed up on a plastic card. Be it money, wealth, bonuses, real estate, belongings, emotions, even expressions of affection – they all fit onto a card that can be lost, exchanged, issued or handed over to someone else, both willingly and not so much. The card emerged as a universal means of transporting value and making it possible for people to express their wishes in a lightning-fast and convenient manner. The given factor has played into the hands of virtually every industry in the world, making it possible for banks to conduct instant transactions, companies to grant or revoke employee access to data and premises, and even make gifts.
The cryptocurrency era is now upon us, with countless projects in the market vying for the title of the most technological, the most capitalized, the most convenient, or the most attractive in terms of usability. But none of that really matters if the bank card is still permeating decentralized space just like before and making it more attractive for people to resort to a proven and time-tested means of settlement than relying on a newfangled invention residing somewhere on some blockchain. The sad reality is that cryptocurrencies are still far from a convenient means of settlement, largely due to their unreliability and the cumbersome nature of their use.
Many people who have had the chance to interact with cryptocurrencies are saying that the assets require far too much knowledge to be used in full and with the most benefit. In some way, these users are right and can single out a few underlying reasons for such an impression, namely:
- Cryptocurrencies require knowledge of wallets;
- Blockchain knowledge is necessary to access the right one;
- Users need to go through several applications to make some transactions;
- Cluttered service application interfaces.
These and many other reasons often make it inconvenient for users to buy BTC with prepaid cards or using other services. In light of such a reality, the need for prepaid bank cards is still very current and many services are offering an abundance of choices in this domain.
Buy BTC With Prepaid Card The Right Way
The bank card is the most straightforward means by which users can buy Bitcoin. Any exchanges operating on the market allow users to connect VISA and MasterCard gateways to conveniently purchase the assets they are interested in. However, many users disregard the risks associated with using their own bank cards when accessing cryptocurrency exchanges.
Any exchanges on the market can be hacked, as evidenced by the abundance of hacking and security breach cases that have occurred over the last few years. 2022 was a record year for hackers who managed to steal in excess of $4.6 billion from exchanges and through phishing means. This indicates the lackluster security of such services and the vulnerability of user credentials and bank details that are stored on exchange platforms. With that in mind, users should consider the option of using prepaid cards to make purchases of cryptocurrencies.
The benefits of prepaid cards are many, as they are one-off and can be disposed of once the amount of funds on them has been exhausted. They are also disposable in terms of connection to cryptocurrency exchanges. Users can buy such a prepaid card once with a set amount of funds on it and then purchase the cryptocurrency they wish before discarding the card and transferring the purchased assets off-site to a safer storage location like a hardware wallet. The practice is not that widespread for several reasons, the chief of which is the need for ongoing transactions.
However, the use of a prepaid bank card for the purchase of cryptocurrencies is a reliable practice that can save a lot of hassle. A prepaid bank card cannot be used beyond the amount that is stored on it and holders of such cards do not need to fear that the assets they deposit onto it will be stolen. If such a card is compromised, holders just need to dispose of it or block it through the bank that issued it. This will automatically render the card unusable.
There are some downsides to using prepaid bank cards for the purchase of BTC and other cryptocurrencies. Since Bitcoin is a very expensive asset to buy, the funds deposited on a prepaid bank card will have to be equal to the cryptocurrency’s current price. The inherent and rather frightening volatility of cryptocurrencies, especially Bitcoin, makes it very difficult to predict how much money one should deposit on a prepaid bank card for the purchase of the given cryptocurrency. If the price of the asset goes up after the user has already purchased such a prepaid card, they will have no choice but issue another one with a higher balance or top up the existing one.
Another disadvantage is that most users who attend cryptocurrency exchanges are constantly making transactions. As such, the bank card connected to the exchange will have to be relevant and active to make sure that it will be able to receive the funds traders deposit onto it or retrieve from it. With this in mind, a prepaid bank card is useless, since most of them only allow deduction of balance operations, not deposits.
Key Takeaways
Banks rely on cards to give their users and clients a set of holistic products. Such products include not just the bank card, but the convenience that comes with using it along with a share of certain benefits. Among the latter can be bonus points, special privileges like access to luxury areas in hotels and airports, or any other number of amenities like discounts at stores. Combined, these services make the bank card an all-in-one access tool for financial operations.
Prepaid bank cards, on the other hand, have limited functionality and are unfit for everyday use in such cases as exchange operations that require constant transactions. However, the security that prepaid bank cards provide regarding potential hacking and loss of funds make them ideal instruments for cryptocurrency operations and one-off purchases.
