NFT Art on Debit Cards? Mastercard and Crypto App hi Have Your Back

The Alpha

• The crypto and financial app hi has partnered with Mastercard to announce the world’s first NFT-customizable fiat and crypto debit card for hi users, according to a press release.

• Gold-tier members of hi will be able to decorate their cards with an NFT they can verify they own as long as it meets Mastercard’s design standards.

• The hi Debit Mastercard comes in six variants that hinge on a hi user’s membership tier. Customers can become a member by staking HI, hi’s native token. Memberships start at a price point of around 10 euros.

Why it matters

Legacy businesses continue to push into the Web3 space, but the reason that’s significant comes from context. The more big brands like Mastercard experiment with NFTs, even cosmetically, the greater their mainstream appeal will grow, which expedites and widens adoption of the tech.

“As consumer interest in crypto and NFTs continues to grow, we are committed to making them an accessible payments choice for the communities who wish to use them,” said Christian Rau, Senior Vice President, Crypto and Fintech Enablement at Mastercard, in the press release. “We are proud to be working with hi to continue to drive innovation in the market and enable these customizable cards together with the safety and security you’d expect from Mastercard.”

This isn’t Mastercard’s first flirtation with NFTs. In January, the company partnered with Coinbase to allow the platform’s users to purchase NFTs using a Mastercard credit or debit card without needing to buy crypto first. It also teamed up with the City of Miami in July to support the launch of a 5,000-strong NFT collection featuring art from more than 50 local artists.

The card connects with a user’s hi wallet and supports euros, pounds, Bitcoin, ETH, USDT, and more.

While the debit card’s benefits vary depending on a hi user’s membership tier, only “gold” tier members and above — those who have staked 100,000 of hi’s native token, HI, or more — will be able to personalize the face of their card with an NFT avatar they verifiably own, provided that NFT meets Mastercard’s card design standards.

Mastercard and hi’s new card will support NFTs from a limited range of NFT collections: CryptoPunks, Moonbirds, Goblins, Bored Apes, and Azukis. 

What’s next:

Mastercard and hi putting these cards out isn’t a game-changing Web3 move, but it could prove influential. Visibility matters, and anything that helps normalize NFTs, even just seeing one on a card as someone pays for their coffee, is a good thing.

But wait! There’s more: