Client-controlled authorisation uses live rates, collateral, and API mirroring while preserving custody, treasury, pricing, and conversion responsibilities
Consumer fintechs and neobanks that offer both cash accounts and virtual-asset wallets have often kept those balances separate. Customers typically need to sell or swap assets before spending them through a card, while providers must manage distinct funding and redemption flows.
On 9 September 2026, a fintech card-program client announced the implementation of a virtual-asset ledger to make bitcoin balances available for card purchases alongside cash and program rewards.
The approach lets the client set conversion rates and decide which balance funds each transaction, while retaining custody of customer assets and control of the customer relationship.
The implementation addresses the operational gap between custody wallets and card-payment systems. Rather than requiring a pre-funded stablecoin balance or a dedicated treasury workflow for each supported asset, the client can reflect customer balances in its card program and convert value when a transaction is authorised. The technical design includes:
- An API-based balance ledger that mirrors customer virtual-asset holdings for card authorization
- A combined available-spend calculation across cash, bitcoin, and client-defined units such as cashback, loyalty points, credit lines, or salary allowances
- Point-of-sale conversion using rates supplied by the client
- Client-controlled rules that determine the source balance for each transaction
- A collateral model in which the client maintains a master balance in dollar-backed stablecoins to support outstanding card spending
- Separation of responsibilities: the client manages custody, treasury operations, and conversion, while the issuing platform supports card processing and settlement
Harris Leow, Head of Product, Reap, the card-issuing infrastructure provider, said the infrastructure allows a platform to settle spending “against the virtual assets users already hold” rather than requiring an upfront swap into another balance type.
Bitcoin support is available through Reap’s existing API, with cards issued from Hong Kong and Mexico for use on the VISA network. Its role is limited to the card-program and collateral infrastructure; clients retain responsibility for the underlying assets, pricing, and conversion processes.
