Major cryptocurrency exchange Poloniex announced that it now allows its customers to use credit cards and bank accounts on the platform in a Medium post published on July 9.
Per the release, exchange users from 80 countries can now directly move funds to and from their bank accounts, which will be automatically converted into stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) on Poloniex.
Initially, the weekly limits are $50,000 for deposits and $25,000 for withdrawals, but the exchange admits that those limits can be increased to fit the needs of specific customers.
Customers in more than 60 jurisdictions will be able to purchase cryptocurrencies using their debit or credit cards. Poloniex enabled card payments through a partnership with payment processor Simplex, which will charge a 3.5% fee (or $10, whichever is greater) and allow to buy a minimum of $50 of Bitcoin (BTC). The company states:
“Because Simplex charges the greater of $10 or 3.5%, buying any amount of bitcoin under $300 will result in you paying more than 3.5% in fees. If you don’t want to incur more than 3.5% in fees, buying more than $300 of bitcoin will ensure this.”
Crypto payments firm Circle purchased Poloniex in February 2018 for $400 million. At press time, Poloniex is the 58th largest cryptocurrency exchange by adjusted 24-hour trade volume according to data from CoinMarketCap.
As Cointelegraph reported in June, major fiat-crypto trading platform OKCoin partnered with Simplex to enable global users to make U.S. dollar deposits via debit or credit card.
In February, crypto exchange trade.io also offered clients the option to purchase a range of popular cryptocurrencies by credit or debit card via a partnership with Simplex.