- Wirecard has been granted permission to resume operations in the UK
- Crypto debit card holders can use their cards again
- Companies hoping EU customers will regain access soon
Wirecard has been given the go ahead to resume operations in the UK, meaning that British crypto debit card holders are now able to use their cards once more. Crypto.com, TenX, and Cryptopay have already announced that their cards have been reactivated, although it has imposed restrictions on Wirecard in terms of where it can store its money so customers are at no risk of losing funds in the fallout of the scandal.
Wirecard Told by FCA to Store Customers’ Money Safely
Wirecard’s spectacular collapse last week left subsidies like Wirecard Solutions, who issue crypto debit cards for the likes of Crypto.com, TenX, and Cryptopay, on the rack, not knowing if they too would go under. The impacted crypto debit card providers were all forced to suspend operations in the wake of the revelation, but the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has consented to e-money and payment services resuming in the country.
This has meant that crypto debit card providers have been able to tell customers that normal services have been resumed:
Update: All Europe/UK cards have been reactivated.
The FCA lifted the ban on Wirecard UK at 00:01 UTC on 30 Jun.
Kindly note that card balances were refunded to users’ crypto wallets last week, please top up your card before using it. pic.twitter.com/wE3BaVSCq0
— Crypto.com (@cryptocom) June 30, 2020
The TenX Visa Card and related services have now been re-enabled! We will continue to closely monitor the developing situation and keep you updated, thank you for your support. pic.twitter.com/6JLAbZydGQ
— TenX (@tenxwallet) June 30, 2020
https://t.co/c3J5tRUwlA cards are back on track!
As of today, @wirecard resumed its operations in the UK, meaning that our clients can resume enjoying our https://t.co/c3J5tRUwlA prepaid cards. pic.twitter.com/Tu27vFTQMY— Cryptopay (@cryptopay) June 30, 2020
Of the affected card providers, TenX and Crypto.com moved very quickly to protect their customers’ assets, whereas Cryptopay didn’t even mention the fact that their cards weren’t working.
Crypto Debit Cards Adoption Fights On
Crypto debit cards have something of a rocky history, with the Wavecrest/Visa issue in 2018 rendering almost all cards at the time useless in one fell swoop. This was down to Visa cancelling its services to Wavecrest and was nothing to do with the crypto companies themselves. Similarly, this issue is the kind of black swan event that no one could have predicted, caused by Wirecard cooking the books and engaging in massive fraud over a period of years.
Hopefully Wirecard can continue to service the crypto debit card industry despite its parent company’s trials and EU customers will also soon be able to use their cards as well.
