Quontic today announced that it is introducing bitcoin rewards checking, per a release shared with Bitcoin Magazine.
According to the release, “Quontic is the first FDIC-insured financial institution in the U.S. to go live with a Bitcoin rewards debit card.” Customers can earn 1.5 percent in bitcoin on eligible debit card purchases, which must occur at the point of sale.
“Quontic’s disruptive banking platform reimagines traditional banking with adaptive lending and innovative deposit products that transcend legacy banking inequities,” according to the release.
Quontic's entrance into Bitcoin with its bitcoin-back rewards debit card demonstrates the early entrance of challenger and digital banks into offering Bitcoin services. This is a pivotal time in Bitcoin’s development as it signals both consumer demand for Bitcoin services as well as increased trust in the Bitcoin Network.
The program offers the following debit card perks:
- 1.5 percent in Bitcoin on eligible debit card purchases
- A mobile app and access to over 90,000 surcharge-free ATMs
- ApplePay, GooglePay and SamsungPay compatiability
- Zelle peer-to-peer payments
“Bitcoin is gaining massive momentum both as a digital currency, an asset class and as a store of wealth,” CEO and Founder of Quontic Steven Schnall said, per the release. “This is of particular importance today given that the federal government printed an additional $3 trillion in money in 2020 in response to COVID-19 and the accompanying risk of inflation and dollar devaluation. The debut of our bitcoin rewards checking account is groundbreaking and will serve a substantial purpose.”
Quontic is partnering with NYDIG, a financial services firm dedicated to Bitcoin, which helped MassMutual acquire $100 billion worth of bitcoin last week.
“Quontic will be extending a limited number of invitations to apply to its new bitcoin rewards checking program with its initial launch, with increased availability in the coming months,” according to the announcement. :”Only residents of Alabama, Arkansas, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Montana, New York, Pennsylvania, Utah, Wisconsin and Wyoming are currently eligible to apply.”