If you wanted a crypto-earning credit card at the end of 2021, you had a blockchain buffet of options. Multiple crypto companies like Gemini and BlockFi had launched cards that earned crypto rewards directly, while more established credit cards tacked on crypto as a redemption option.
But then the so-called crypto winter of 2022 hit, which completely reshaped the cryptocurrency ecosystem, credit cards included. BlockFi’s co-branded credit card was the first domino to fall after the company filed for bankruptcy. Other cards ended the ability to redeem rewards for crypto. By the end of 2024, the crypto credit card market had fizzled, and you could count on a couple of fingers the number of remaining options.
Fast-forward to 2025, though, and an infusion of crypto-friendly legislation seems to have given the market a second wind.
“This comeback of crypto credit cards is likely due to the more accommodating, softer regulatory environment making banks feel comfortable partnering with crypto platforms,” says Tonantzin Carmona, a fellow at the Brookings Institution who focuses on financial and emerging technologies, among other topics.
How long this renaissance will last — and where the market will end up over the next few years — are open questions. But what’s clear is that right now, crypto credit cards are back.
Pro-crypto laws, plus eased regulations
The Trump White House is pro-crypto. Members of the Trump family co-founded World Liberty Financial, a cryptocurrency business, and President Trump has his own crypto token. This partiality toward crypto has trickled down into legislation, none more important than the GENIUS Act, which became law in July 2025.
The law makes it easier for banks to transact in stablecoins, a cryptocurrency that is less volatile than other coins because its value is pegged to a real asset such as the U.S. dollar. And indeed, big banks such as JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America® and Citi are considering getting involved in stablecoins. Once major banks and credit unions are issuing cryptocurrency, it’s not hard to imagine the same financial institutions issuing crypto-earning credit cards.
“This administration has made sweeping regulatory changes that have made traditional financial companies feel more comfortable moving into the crypto market without putting their existing business at risk,” says Will Reeves, founder and CEO of Fold, a Bitcoin financial services company.
While crypto-friendly legislation was advancing to Trump’s desk, crypto regulation was being pulled back.
On April 25, 2025, the Federal Reserve said it was rescinding two supervisory letters concerning the oversight of banks involved in crypto-related activities. At the same time, the Federal Reserve, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency collectively withdrew two joint statements “regarding banks’ crypto-asset activities and exposures,” according to the Board’s press release.
These new laws and policies have created a political, legal and financial environment that’s friendly to crypto.
“If you want to stay competitive, why not get into a space that’s gaining traction and support,” Carmona says. “It makes it easier to enter a space if you’re not being held to a certain standard.”
The comeback
Crypto credit cards are returning in a big way this year with announcements from major players in the cryptocurrency and finance worlds.
Coinbase made an even bigger splash at the end of July with its news that it was partnering with JPMorgan Chase. By late 2025, Chase says, customers will be able to fund Coinbase wallets with a Chase credit card; by 2026, the bank says, it will allow its customers to link a bank account to a Coinbase wallet and transfer their credit card rewards to Coinbase accounts.
That partnership marks a shift for both companies and highlights just how dramatically the fortune of crypto credit cards has changed in three years: Previously, Coinbase didn’t allow its users to buy crypto with a credit card. And Chase CEO Jamie Dimon has in the past been an outspoken critic of crypto, calling crypto tokens “decentralized Ponzi schemes” during a 2022 House hearing on bank oversight.
By the end of 2025, a Bitcoin-earning credit card from Fold is expected to be on the market. Reeves says 75,000 people are already on the waitlist.
Crypto history calls for caution
As crypto credit cards become more widespread, the general public — not just crypto enthusiasts — may want to get in. Reeves predicts that Bitcoin-earning credit cards will “rapidly eat into the dominance of airline miles and cash back programs in the next five years.”
However, Carmona urges caution.
“When big banks and mainstream companies go into this world or prop it up, they legitimize it, and people may think that crypto is safer than it actually is,” she says.
Cryptocurrency is an inherently volatile asset, and the limited oversight of the crypto industry can leave consumers unprotected from financial risk. For example, stablecoins are not insured by the government, so if a crypto exchange fails, consumers may not get their money back.
The fallout from BlockFi’s collapse also serves as a warning for those considering a crypto credit card. After BlockFi filed for bankruptcy, its credit card was no longer usable.
Reeves says that any concerns about the safety of crypto credit cards are legitimate given recent history, but argues that the second wave of cards is less risky because of the higher quality of companies involved in issuing the cards and managing the rewards programs.
It’s undeniable, though, that the crypto credit card industry is still in its nascent stages. If you get a crypto credit card, it’s probably wise to have a backup payment method. You never know whether another crypto winter might be around the corner.
