Coinbase Launches Crypto Gift Cards for Major Retailers in Partnership with WeGift

One of the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchanges, Coinbase launches crypto gift cards in Europe and Australia, enabling customers to purchase goods and services with retailers such as Amazon and Uber using their crypto assets.

The new feature comes by way of a partnership with London-based digital gift card startup WeGift, giving customers the option to convert virtual currency stored in their Coinbase wallets into gift cards, with an allowance of up to $5000 per day.

Currently the San Francisco-based crypto exchange only supports bitcoin, bitcoin cash, litecoin and ethereum.  However in statement released on 13th July, Coinbase announced that they were exploring the addition of:

“the following assets to Coinbase: Cardano (ADA), Basic Attention Token (BAT), Stellar Lumens (XLM), Zcash (ZEC), 0x (ZRX)”

The application in the U.K. currently offers gift cards for over 120 major brands including Tesco, M&S, Thomas Cook, Uber, Ticketmaster and Nike, each offering bonuses by way of a percentage discount.  In a statement made upon the launch, Coinbase said:

“Whether it’s converting Bitcoin into Uber credits or Ethereum into an ASOS e-gift card, customers will have greater flexibility and control over how they use their crypto,”

The launch comes just months after securing an e-money license from the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), allowing Coinbase to provide payment services and issue digital cash alternatives in the country, Coinbase stated:

“With the launch of e-gift cards, customers have a new option to spend their crypto balances, realising its value to buy tangible things or experiences.”

The program is being rolled out to customers in Australia and throughout Europe, with retailers based in the U.K., Spain, France, Italy and the Netherlands.  When asked if more countries will be added, WeGift said:

“we’ll be expanding the number of retailers and markets over the next three months, as well as looking to expand into other countries soon after.”

This is not the first program of it’s kind for the company, in 2013 Coinbase also partnered with a New York-based digital gift card firm called eGifter to offer crypto gift cards, which still exits today, however these can only be purchased with the original bitcoin.