Quontic Bank becomes a pioneer FDIC-insured financial institution to launch a Bitcoin rewards checking program, as announced yesterday in a press release by PR Newswire.
Earn Bitcoins While Shopping
According to the announcement, users of this reward system would have access to surcharge-free ATMs, ApplePay, GooglePay, SamsungPay, and Zelle peer-to-peer payments at no cost. In addition, customers would also be able to earn at least 1.5% back in Bitcoins on any eligible purchases they make with their Quontic debit cards.
The bank is working with NYDIG, a Bitcoin specialist firm that would act as the custodian of the crypto asset. The bank would also be working with FIS to build a mobile app that would keep track of such Bitcoin rewards. It is expected that the app would be launched by the second quarter of 2021.
The App would allow debit cardholders to be able to open new accounts and manage their old accounts through their mobile devices.
At present, the rewards can only be held in NYDIG wallets. Customers cannot transfer such rewards to other wallets. However, they can choose to redeem the reward in cash.
This reward system was subject to the approval of the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Earlier this year, the OCC had allowed banks to provide custody services for crypto assets in the country. The acting Comptroller of the agency has also hinted that more crypto-friendly policies could be on their way after the President Trump administration.
Quontic’s Bitcoin Rewards Checking program Is Groundbreaking — Quontic CEO
The CEO of Quontic, Steven Schnall, has said that Quontic’s new reward program is an innovative product in the traditional banking industry.
According to him, this is the first time that any bank would be doing anything tangible with Bitcoin that would have a direct impact on consumers. He further added that the current usage and adoption of Bitcoin is growing and that his bank is offering users an opportunity to earn more by just using their debit cards.
It is expected that the reward program would, currently, only be in states that NYDIG operates in. This means that the rewards are only presently open to people in Alabama, Arkansas, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
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