How do crypto debit cards work?

A crypto debit card converts your crypto to fiat at the moment of payment, then settles with the merchant via the Visa or Mastercard network. The merchant sees a normal card payment; you see your crypto balance debited. Some cards top up from a stablecoin balance for predictable spending.

Are there fees on a crypto card?

Most crypto cards charge: a small monthly fee or none, a 1–3% conversion fee per transaction, and FX fees for purchases in non-card-currency. Some premium cards waive fees if you hold the platform's native token. Always check before using a card abroad.

Can I use a crypto card anywhere?

Crypto cards work anywhere Visa or Mastercard is accepted — globally, online, in-store, and at ATMs. Geographic restrictions apply: most cards are not available in the US (regulatory) or some emerging markets (KYC complexity). Dubai, Singapore, and the EU have the broadest crypto card access.

Is a crypto card safe?

Crypto cards are as safe as traditional debit cards from a payments perspective. The crypto risks are: centralised custody of funds backing the card, platform insolvency risk, and stablecoin de-pegging risk if you spend a stablecoin. Use cards from regulated issuers and never hold large balances.

What is a DeFi aggregator?

A DeFi aggregator is a platform that routes your crypto swaps across hundreds of decentralised exchanges (DEXes) simultaneously to find the best rate and lowest slippage. Instead of trading on a single DEX like Uniswap, an aggregator like Steyble splits your trade across multiple pools and chains to maximise your output.

What is a crypto super app?

A crypto super app is a single non-custodial platform that combines every DeFi service — token swapping, staking, perpetuals trading, prediction markets, copy trading, cross-chain bridging, and crypto cards — in one interface. Steyble is a crypto super app, meaning you never need to switch between multiple DeFi applications.

Is Steyble self-custodial?

Yes. Steyble is entirely non-custodial and self-custodial. You hold your private keys at all times. Steyble provides the interface and smart contract routing, but never holds, controls, or has access to your assets. Every transaction requires your explicit wallet signature.

How do prediction markets work in crypto?

Crypto prediction markets let you buy or sell shares in the outcome of real-world events using on-chain smart contracts. If you buy a 'Yes' share at $0.35, you receive $1 if the event occurs (a $0.65 profit) or lose $0.35 if it does not. Markets cover crypto prices, elections, sports results, and macro events. Steyble's prediction markets are non-custodial — your funds remain in your wallet until settlement.

What are perpetual futures in crypto?

Perpetual futures (perps) are leveraged crypto trading contracts with no expiry date. Unlike traditional futures that expire monthly, perps let you hold long or short positions indefinitely. A periodic funding rate keeps the perp price aligned with spot. Steyble perpetuals run on decentralised smart contracts — you trade directly from your own wallet with full transparency into liquidation parameters.

How does copy trading work on Steyble?

Copy trading on Steyble automatically mirrors the on-chain trades of verified top-performing wallet strategies. You choose the wallets you want to copy, set your position sizing and risk limits, and Steyble replicates their trades in real time. Unlike centralised copy trading, Steyble is non-custodial — you never give up control of your funds.

What is the best way to earn passive income with crypto in 2026?

The best methods for passive crypto income in 2026 are: (1) liquid staking ETH or SOL at 3.5–8% APY, (2) lending stablecoins on lending protocols at 5–9% APY, (3) non-custodial copy trading to mirror proven wallet strategies, (4) providing liquidity to stablecoin pools at 3–6% APY, and (5) on-chain prediction markets for event-driven returns. Steyble provides access to all five methods in a single platform.

What is the best DEX aggregator in 2026?

The best DEX aggregators in 2026 route across 15+ blockchains and 100+ liquidity sources with MEV protection. Steyble's swap aggregator covers 250+ liquidity sources across Ethereum, Solana, Arbitrum, Base, and more — consistently delivering better rates than going directly to any single DEX. For large swaps, using an aggregator saves 0.5–2% per transaction.

How a Visa Crypto Card Settles: The Authorisation-to-Settlement Path

A crypto card swipe at a coffee shop triggers a 5-stage settlement path that ends on-chain. Walk through it transaction by transaction.

When you tap a crypto-funded Visa card at a coffee shop in Dubai for a 24 AED flat white, a chain of events runs across at least four parties — terminal, acquirer, Visa network, card issuer — and ends with an on-chain transaction that moves USDC from your self-custodial wallet to the issuer's settlement contract. The flow is fast, transparent, and worth understanding because it tells you a lot about what 'self-custodial spending' actually means.

Stage 1: Authorisation

Terminal sends auth message: card number, amount (24 AED ≈ $6.53), merchant ID, currency
Visa network routes the auth to the card's issuer (your card processor)
Issuer's auth service queries the linked self-custodial wallet's USDC balance via a Steyble RPC call
Wallet balance check returns within ~150ms — yes, balance covers the spend
Auth approved, issuer responds 'OK' to Visa, terminal prints receipt — total elapsed time roughly 800ms

Stage 2: Soft Hold

After authorisation, the issuer places a 'soft hold' on the user's wallet — a logical commitment that the funds are reserved for this specific authorisation. Importantly, the funds have not yet moved on-chain. They are still in the user's self-custodial wallet, still earning yield if the wallet is integrated with a lending vault. The hold prevents double-spend across multiple concurrent authorisations.

Stage 3: On-Chain Settlement Transaction

At end of business day (or in real time on instant-settlement issuers), Visa pushes a settlement file to the acquirer
The acquirer settles to the merchant's bank in the local currency (AED to the coffee shop's bank in Dubai)
Issuer's contract then debits the user's wallet via a pre-authorised allowance — moves USDC from user's wallet to issuer's settlement contract
On-chain tx confirms in 1-2 seconds (Solana) or 1-3 minutes (Ethereum L2) depending on the wallet's home chain
User sees the on-chain tx in the wallet feed alongside the matching card transaction

Stage 4: Cashback Settlement

If the card pays cashback (Steyble Card returns 1.5% in USDC), the cashback is credited as a separate on-chain transaction shortly after the settlement. The user can verify cashback exactly the way they verify any other receipt — by inspecting the on-chain tx, not by trusting an issuer's internal ledger.

Why Real-Time Settlement Matters

No pre-funded balance — user keeps full control and full yield until the moment of authorisation
No counterparty risk on idle balance — the issuer holds nothing for the user except the per-tx soft holds
Full on-chain audit trail — every spend has a matching wallet transaction the user signed
If the issuer fails, the user loses at most a few hours of unsettled spends — not the entire stored balance

What the Steyble Card Does Differently

The Steyble Card runs the real-time settlement path described above. The user's USDC balance never leaves the self-custodial wallet between authorisations. There is no card-issuer-held cash balance to lose. Cashback is paid back to the same wallet, on-chain, in USDC. This is the operational architecture behind the 'self-custodial spend rail' phrase — and it is the mechanism every modern crypto card should be measured against.