Black Friday for Europeans: VISA Europe has directed the debit card issuer WaveCrest Holdings Ltd to suspend all Bitcoin cards issued by them. All funds on the Debit cards are frozen and need to be manually released by filling out forms and hoping for the best.
Here is the official email I have receided this morning:
Yesterday our Bitwala Card issuer WaveCrest Holdings Ltd received direction from Visa Europe to immediately suspend all Bitwala cards effective immediately. Unfortunately, neither Visa nor WaveCrest were able to provide us or you with more time to prepare for this announcement.Our team has been working very closely from the time of the announcement until now with Wavecrest to provide you with the most up to date information possible.
What this means for you
Your Bitwala card is now deactivated and you will not be able to use it for further payments or withdrawals. This affects both physical and virtual cards.
What happens to your funds?
Bitwala has been assured that all affected users will get a refund for their card balance and any outstanding card top-ups directly into their bank account.
To receive a refund
- Please fill in this form
- Send it to support14@mychoicecorporate.com with the subject of “Bitwala Card Refund”
For those of you who have ordered your card recently, we agree that it's unfair that you haven't had more time to use it. Therefore, we will be issuing refunds for the card order fee to all users who ordered it on or after 1 December 2017.However, at the moment we are unable to specify how long refunds will take. We appreciate your patience as we respond to this situation.
What is Bitwala doing next?
The Bitwala Debit Card remains one of the pillars of our service and we will make it again part of our product offering. Ever since we announced our vision, we have been approached by a number of alternative card issuers and we are already in discussions to bring a solution in the near future.
We want to sincerely thank you for using our card. We are disappointed that we can’t serve you anymore and that the change came so quickly. As part of our commitment to you, we will send you an email once the Bitwala card becomes available again. We hope that in the meantime you will continue being part of the revolution and make the most of Bitwala’s Blockchain Banking and Bitcoin wallet.
What Does That Mean For Europe?
We still need more information who is affected by this and how far the implications of this go. I found a list of companies who had to close their Bitcoin debit cards:
- Xapo
- Bitwala
- TenX (old cards only)
- Wirex
- Cryptopay
As an owner of the BitWala card I am affected personally. Right now I have now way to access my crypto earnings anymore.
However, as annyoing and scary as it sounds it seems that this has something to do with the license of WestCrest Holdings Ltd. There are enough other card issuers in Europe and comapnies will switch to them asap. hence, it is not a big European conspiracy towards Bitcoin & co. but rather some minor issue with this specific card issuer.
I hope that all Steemians affected by that can find a good alternative soon. Let me know in the comments what alternatives you have found to replace your debit cards. (I will not consider a US issued card)