Crypto lender Nexo has announced a partnership with global payments company Mastercard to launch the world’s first “crypto-backed” payment card. It signals the latest move by crypto and establishing financial networks to grow as digital assets become more mainstream.

Nexo claims that the card, which is initially only available in selected European countries, allows users to spend without selling their digital assets, such as bitcoin, used as collateral to back the credit issued. The card is also linked to a Nexo-provided, crypto-backed credit line and can be used at 92 million merchants worldwide, allowing investors to spend up to 90 per cent of the fiat value of their crypto assets, Nexo said.

“There are no minimum repayments, monthly, or inactivity fees. For up to 20,000 euros per month, there are no FX fees. There are no limits on how much a customer can spend or withdraw from the open credit line, and interest is only charged on credit spent. Customers with a loan-to-value ratio of 20 per cent or less continue to pay zero per cent interest,” Nexo added.