Startup Abra has integrated new options for buying Bitcoin. Through its website or via the Abra app, users can now buy Bitcoin with a Visa or Mastercard credit card or debit card from anywhere in the world.
Prior to the addition of the new payment options, US Abra users could use American Express and worldwide Abra users could buy Bitcoin by linking to a bank account and making an ACH deposit or a wire transfer. Processing times are usually 1-3 business days for ACH transfers and 5-8 business days for wire transfers.
The Visa and Mastercard options dramatically increase the speed at which users can purchase cryptocurrency, and it increases the spending limit. Users can buy up to $20,000 worth of Bitcoin at a time, a ten-fold increase over the $2,000 limit for bank deposits.
The new purchasing options have the potential to reach a worldwide audience of hundreds of millions of credit card holders. Abra already has users from 70 countries. “With this launch, we can now offer a simple way for customers globally to use Abra to buy their first Bitcoin using any Visa or Mastercard, and then start investing in any of the other 24 cryptocurrencies we support today,” said Abra CEO Bill Barhydt in an interview with Bitcoin Magazine.
Abra also offers users without bank account services the option to buy altcoins using Bitcoin and Litecoin.
The company has partnered with Simplex, a fintech company, to power the new payment options. As an EU licensed financial institution, Simplex focuses on fraud prevention using an AI algorithm.
Abra is a non-custodial wallet and does not directly hold customers’ funds. Instead, it implements blockchain technology that lets users hold the keys to their own funds, facilitating trades for 25 cryptocurrencies, and allowing users to send and receive Bitcoin, Litecoin and over 50 fiat currencies.
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