Kraken review

The monthly fee is €0 and the currency conversion fee is 0%. Because the card type is debit, there is no revolving balance to pay interest on. It holds position 1 of 419 on monthly fee and position 1 of 259 on currency conversion.

The card runs through Payward Europe Solutions Limited, based in Ireland and listed with the Central Bank of Ireland under MiCA CASP 9845003D98SCC2851458 for crypto services, plus an electronic money licence recorded as PSD_EMI IE_CBI!C453020. The exchange itself was founded in 2011.

It is a debit card, so it spends balances held with the exchange rather than borrowing. The network is mastercard, so it is taken wherever Mastercard debit cards work, and the feature list includes crypto, multi currency and travel.

Balances cover 600 currencies, and the currency conversion fee is 0%. That suits people who earn or travel in several currencies, because a spend outside the base currency does not add a conversion charge on top of the retail rate.

Yes, the cashback rate is 2%, paid on card spend. It adds to an account where the monthly fee is €0 and the currency conversion fee is 0%, so the card gives a reward without a fee to offset.

Support runs on chat and help centre, so help comes through live chat and through the help centre, with no phone number in the list. Chat suits a quick question about a declined payment, and the help centre handles account and card issues in writing.

It depends on the goal. Kraken suits readers who want to spend crypto with a €0 monthly fee and a 0% conversion fee. A secured credit card such as Varo Believe or Chime is aimed at building a credit record instead, with monthly fees of $0 and $0.

A virtual card is listed among the crypto, multi currency and travel features, so there is a card form that lives in a wallet rather than in plastic. It suits booking travel and signing up to services where a physical card is not wanted, alongside the physical mastercard card.