Bitcoin Daily: BlockFi, Visa To Offer Card With Bitcoin As Rewards; Crypto-Based Event Aims To Raise $1 Million For Charity

Visa has partnered with BlockFi to launch a credit card that offers bitcoin rewards rather than travel points or cash back, according to an announcement

The BlockFi Bitcoin Rewards Credit Card, which will be available in the spring of 2021, will give 1.5 percent cash back on all purchases and immediately convert it to bitcoin, the announcement stated. The card carries a $200 annual fee.

It’s another step toward mainstream adoption for cryptocurrency.

“We hope this card will be a valuable personal financial tool for our clients to earn bitcoin while making everyday purchases,” the announcement stated. “Additionally, we hope it helps expose more people to bitcoin and ultimately creates more bitcoin owners.”

In other news, The Giving Block is aiming to raise at least $1 million in donations through its Bitcoin Tuesday event, according to Cointelegraph.

Donations can be made throughout the month of December. More than 120 charities and 30 blockchain companies are participating in the fundraising event.

“All our charities accept more than just Bitcoin,” said The Giving Block, per Cointelegraph. “Bitcoin is front and center, but you can donate every crypto currently supported on Gemini.”

Participating nonprofits include the American Cancer Society, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and Trees for the Future.

This year’s Bitcoin Tuesday will see “1,000 percent growth in nonprofits accepting cryptocurrency donations,” The Giving Block said, per Cointelegraph.

Meanwhile, David Puth is joining the Centre Consortium, the issuer of the USD Coin (USDC), as CEO, Centre announced in a blog post.

Puth will work to expand Centre’s reach and its membership from beyond crypto finance firms to financial services and payments firms like banks and FinTechs, according to the post.

The Centre Consortium was co-founded in 2018 by Circle and Coinbase and governs the USDC. The USDC’s circulation has grown nearly 500 percent in 2020 to almost $3 billion, according to the blog.

“I could not be more enthused about joining Centre at this critical time in the industry,” Puth said in the post. “The growth of USDC over the course of 2020 is indicative of what I expect will be the path for Centre business activities and that of future Centre-supported stablecoins.”

Puth will also work to push the adoption of Centre stablecoins on more blockchain networks and to develop new fiat digital currencies based on Centre standards.

And, Nevada-based Blockchains has acquired identity management provider Cambridge Blockchain, according to CoinDesk. The merged companies aim to release an un-hosted wallet in the spring of 2021.

“We reached out to Cambridge and had discussions with them, and it was clear that we shared a common ethos,” said Blockchains Executive Vice President Lee Weiss, per CoinDesk.

Cambridge Blockchain, backed by PayPal, Foxconn and others, brings its expertise in areas like biometrically secure credentialing, to Blockchains, according to CoinDesk.