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Shedding the Shadow of Wirecard! Cryptocurrency debit card provider Wirex partners with Asia-Pacific issuing partner Railsbank

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Shedding the Shadow of Wirecard! Cryptocurrency debit card provider Wirex partners with Asia-Pacific issuing partner Railsbank

After the Wirecard scandal involving up to 1.9 billion euros, several cryptocurrency debit card companies such as Crypto.com, Wirex, and TenX were affected. On the 26th, Wirex announced a partnership with Railsbank to issue cards in the Asia-Pacific region. It is reported that Wirex already has 3 million users in the Asia-Pacific region, and this collaboration will help them to continue growing in the region.

Previous coverage: [Wirecard's 1.9 billion scandal, MCO Visa card issuer bankruptcy overview]

Who is Railsbank?

It is an open banking platform based in London, founded in 2016. According to its official website, the services it provides include issuing debit cards, issuing IBANs (International Bank Account Numbers), and receiving payments through API integration.

Not the First Time for Card Issuer Changes

Changing card issuers is not a new occurrence in the cryptocurrency debit card sector. In 2018, a payment company named WaveCrest was serving companies like TenX, BitPay, CryptoPay, and Wirex. VISA terminated all VISA card issuing services in January 2018 citing non-compliance with operational standards.

Has Crypto.com Found a New Card Issuer?

According to a report by Josh Lawler: "The card issuer for the Asia-Pacific and Australia region is a subsidiary of Wirecard, and the local government has not prohibited its operations, so card issuance is proceeding as usual." Due to Wirecard's situation, Crypto.com has found a new card issuer for the MCO Visa debit card in the original region.

On July 14, the CEO of Crypto.com tweeted: "Card issuing in Singapore will resume after the BIN (Bank Identification Number) transfer is complete, more details to follow." As of now, there have been no further updates released.