Crypto Payment Card Spending Reaches $759 Million per Month

Crypto Payment Card Spending Reaches $759 Million per Month Monthly spending on crypto payment cards expanded roughly 2.5-fold year-over-year to $759 million in July, propelled by dollar-pegged stablecoins and integration with existing payment rails. Monthly crypto card volume reached $759 million across nearly 9 million purchases in July, averaging about $86 per transaction. Crypto cards convert stablecoins to local fiat currency at checkout, enabling payments without requiring a traditional bank account. Settlement chains shifted from Gnosis early in 2024 to Optimism (29%), Solana (19%), and Base (19%) as of July. Spending moved from Euro-backed EURe to dollar-backed stablecoins, with USDC and USDT representing 58% and 26% of volume, respectively. Rapid Growth in Spend and Transaction Volume Monthly spending on crypto payment cards rose to $759 million in July, up from $306 million a year prior and under $1 million when tracking began in October 2023, according to Paymentscan data and self-reporting from issuer RedotPay. Users executed nearly 9 million purchases in July at an average of roughly $86 per transaction. These cards convert stablecoins into local currencies at the point of sale, allowing users to transact via self-custodial wallets or issuer deposits wherever traditional card networks are accepted. Diversification of Settlement Blockchains Early in 2024, crypto card activity was heavily concentrated on Gnosis via Gnosis Pay. By July, settlement broadened across multiple networks: Optimism accounted for about 29% of monthly spend volume, while Solana and Base each handled about 19%. During the same period, Gnosis's share of spending dropped to approximately 2%. Shift to Digital Dollars and Traditional Rails The denomination of card spending shifted markedly from euro-pegged assets to digital dollars. Early in 2024, euro-backed EURe settled roughly 88% of volume, but that figure dropped to about 2% by July. In its place, USDC rose to 58% and USDT to 26% of card volume. While the sector remains small relative to the trillions processed monthly by traditional payment networks, programs are expanding by utilizing legacy infrastructure, operating almost entirely across Visa rails.

加密支付卡月消费规模突破7.5亿美元，美元稳定币成为结算主导 根据Paymentscan追踪的数据，加密支付卡已从早期概念发展为月消费额超过7.5亿美元的市场，绝大多数交易依托主要卡组织网络（几乎全部为Visa）将稳定币实时兑换为当地法定货币完成结算。 2024年7月加密支付卡月交易量达7.59亿美元，较去年同期的3.06亿美元增长约2.5倍，当月完成近900万笔交易，笔均消费约86美元。 结算底层链呈现多链化，Optimism（约29%）、Solana（约19%）和Base（约19%）占据主导，早期占统治地位的Gnosis份额降至约2%。 结算币种从2024年初以欧元稳定币EURe为主（曾占88%），全面转向美元稳定币，目前USDC和USDT分别占约58%和26%。 交易规模与用户使用情况 加密支付卡允许用户在支持传统银行卡网络的商户刷卡，在POS端将加密资产（绝大部分为稳定币）实时转换为本地货币。持卡人无需传统银行账户，可通过发行方托管或自托管方式持有资产。2024年7月，加密卡月消费额从去年同期的3.06亿美元跃升至7.59亿美元（在2023年10月追踪初期不足100万美元），交易笔数从约520万笔增至近900万笔，单笔平均支出约为86美元。最大发行方RedotPay的支出数据为自报告。 结算公链与币种格局转变 2024年初，加密卡支出高度集中于首个直连自托管钱包的Visa卡项目Gnosis Pay所在链Gnosis。截至7月，结算已分散至多条链，Optimism以约29%的交易量居首，Solana和Base各占约19%，而Gnosis则下滑至约2%。与此同时，结算资产从早期以EURe为主（曾达88%）转变为以美元稳定币主导，目前USDC占58%、USDT占26%，EURe份额则降至约2%。 传统网络依托与行业背景 尽管与传统银行卡网络每月数万亿美元的体量相比，加密卡市场规模仍然较小，但其正在通过依托主要卡组织网络（受追踪项目几乎完全通过Visa）加速融入全球金融系统。这一增长反映了稳定币与代币化资产在更广泛领域内的加速普及。

Stablecoins are increasingly being spent by card swipe. Crypto payment cards have gone from a novelty to more than $750 million in monthly spend. These cards let people pay with crypto anywhere traditional card networks are accepted. Behind the scenes, the crypto — stablecoins, overwhelmingly — gets converted to local currency at the point of sale, so the payments look like any other card transaction to merchants. Crypto cardholders don’t require a traditional bank account. Depending on the program, users either deposit stablecoins with a card issuer, or hold them directly onchain through self-custody. Crypto cards expand people’s access to U.S. dollar accounts globally, and they offer a convenient way for stablecoin holders to transact. Monthly crypto payment card volume reached $759 million in July, up (roughly 2.5x) from $306 million a year earlier — and up from *less than $1 million* when tracking began in October 2023. These figures reflect onchain activity attributable to card programs tracked by [Paymentscan](https://paymentscan.xyz/). (For RedotPay, the largest program by volume, spending is self-reported by the issuer rather than observed onchain.) Growth in the number of purchases made with crypto payment cards is trending similarly to the growth in crypto card volume. Nearly 9 million purchases were made using crypto payment cards during July, up from about 5.2 million a year ago. That puts the average amount spent per transaction at around $86. In early 2024, crypto card spending was concentrated in a single chain: Gnosis, home of Gnosis Pay (the first Visa card connected directly to a self-custodial wallet). As new card programs have launched, the number of card settlement chains has expanded. As of July, Optimism carries about 29% of crypto card spend volume, Solana about 19%, and Base about 19%, according to Paymentscan. Gnosis has dropped to about 2%. Euro-backed stablecoins once dominated spending: In early 2024, around 88% of crypto card volume settled in EURe, much of it on Gnosis. As of July, EURe’s share has fallen to about 2%. Dollar-backed stablecoins have since taken the lead. USDC handles about 58% of card spending and USDT about 26%, up from roughly 48% and 7% a year ago, respectively. Crypto payment card spending now happens overwhelmingly in digital dollars. Crypto payment cards remain a small market next to traditional card networks, which process trillions of dollars per month. But the trend is growing as stablecoins make greater inroads into the global financial system, including by piggybacking on existing major card network rails. For the tracked programs, this is happening almost entirely through Visa. Crypto payment cards are one piece of a broader crypto acceleration post-GENIUS, which we’ve been charting [here](https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/tags/data-insights). That includes the rapid adoption of stablecoins and tokenized assets. **Robert Hackett** is features editor and head of special projects at a16z crypto. **Ryan Holloway** is a data consultant.