Huobi and Solaris crypto-to-fiat debit card launches in the EU

As the crypto space continues to expand into the mainstream, bridging the gap between digital and fiat currencies is a priority for many legacy financial institutions.

Cryptocurrency exchange Huobi announced its partnership with Solaris, a European financial services provider, to launch a crypto-to-fiat debit card.

The program, approved by Visa, allows Huobi users to use their digital assets globally at the point of sale. Users residing in the European Economic Area (EEA) will have access to the card beginning in the second quarter of 2023.

The EEA comprises all 27 European Union (E.U.) member states, as well as Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway.

Commenting on the partnership, Andrea Ramoino, the chief strategy officer at Solaris, hinted at future developments in its collaboration with Huobi.

“This is just the first step in our partnership as we look ahead to delivering more payment options to users in the EEA region and beyond.“

This is not the first crypto-to-fiat card available to residents of the E.U. In 2020, Binance launched its own Visa-accredited crypto-to-fiat card, which allows Europeans to pull funds straight from their Binance accounts.

Related: Dominica works with Huobi for digital identity program

Outside of the E.U., Visa has been an active proponent in bridging the crypto-fiat gap. In October 2022, Blockchain.com announced its partnership with Visa to offer a crypto debit card, which is only available to residents of the United States.

Prior to its collapse, FTX had also partnered with Visa to offer a debit card in 40 countries.

Most recently, the financial service provider worked with the fintech company, ZELF, to launch an anonymous debit card with a crypto recharge. This allows users to open a checking account based on the U.S. dollar with only their name, email and phone number.

Before the start of 2023, Visa also hinted at a feature allowing users to auto-pay bills from their crypto wallet.