So here's the thing about crypto credit cards — most of them make you sell your ETH to load the card. You swap your precious coins into boring fiat, it earns nothing, and you swipe. That's just a very expensive debit card with extra steps.
ether.fi looked at this problem and asked: what if you never had to sell anything?
That's the pitch behind ether.fi Cash — a non-custodial Visa card where your ETH stays staked and earning yield right up until the moment you buy your coffee. And then you get 3% cashback on top of it. In wETH.
👉 Sign up for ether.fi Cash and start earning
ether.fi is a DeFi platform that lets you earn with ETH, BTC, and stablecoins while accessing a crypto Visa card — all non-custodial and fully yours. The broader protocol is built around liquid restaking: users can mint eETH, a liquid staking token, which facilitates automatic restaking and participation in the DeFi ecosystem.
But the part most people are talking about right now is ether.fi Cash — the card product. Think of it as your entire DeFi portfolio moonlighting as a Visa card.
There are two ways to pay with ether.fi Cash, and the distinction matters:
Direct Pay Mode — Works like a debit card. You hold USDC or eETH in your vault and the card draws from it at the moment of purchase. The magic here is that your eETH earns roughly 3% staking yield until the second you buy that coffee.
Borrow Mode — This is the interesting one. You stake ETH as collateral, get a spending limit, and your ETH keeps earning yield the entire time. ether.fi borrows USDC on your behalf from a lending pool and uses it to pay the merchant. Your ETH never moves. ether.fi currently offers 0% interest on borrowed USDC during a promotional period, typically running through Q2 2026. After that, rates revert to the floating AAVE market rate.
For US crypto holders especially, this structure has a hidden bonus: spending against staked ETH avoids triggering a taxable sale, which is a significant advantage over cards that require selling crypto to fund spending.
All cashback is paid in wETH and deposited into your vault monthly. The standard rate is 2% for Core members and 3% for Luxe/Pinnacle, though promotional campaigns may temporarily increase this to 5%.
As of early 2026, a promotional campaign has been running 3% cashback across all tiers — meaning even free Core members are getting the top rate right now.
ether.fi has distributed $5M in Membership Rewards plus 20% extra cashback in recent months, with no monthly caps on spending. The cashback comes back in wETH, so every swipe is quietly stacking more ETH for you.
ether.fi's loyalty program is called The Club, and it has four tiers. Here's what each one looks like:
| Tier | How to Unlock | Cashback | Physical Card | Virtual Cards | Key Perk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Core | Free (everyone starts here) | 2% (3% promo) | $40 refundable deposit | 3 | Entry-level access, Visa Signature benefits |
| Luxe | 10K pts/mo or 15K staked ETHFI | 3% | Free | More | 65% off luxury hotels, airport lounge, priority support |
| Pinnacle | 50K pts/mo or 100K staked ETHFI | 3% | Metal black card | 50 | Unlimited cards, conference passes, $200K/month onramp |
| VIP | Invite only | 3%+ (enhanced) | Gold metal card | Unlimited | Ventures deal access, zero FX fees, crypto concierge |
👉 Join ether.fi and start at Core for free
The fastest path to Luxe? Spending on the card. Card spending earns 3,000 points per $1,000 spent — that's $3,334/month in spending to move from Core to Luxe, which takes around one month of moderate usage.
All public tiers share identical fees: $0 annual, 1% FX, 2% ATM, 0.2% fiat-to-crypto conversion.
The 1% foreign transaction fee is the only real drawback. Cards like Crypto.com (0% at Jade and above), Wirex (0%), and Bleap (0%) all offer zero FX. So if you're traveling internationally a lot, factor that in. For domestic spending, the 3% cashback easily covers it and then some.
This is underrated. The Liquid Vault earns 5%+ APY on USDC. If you keep $5,000–$10,000 in USDC for Direct Pay spending, you're earning significant yield on cash that would otherwise sit idle in a traditional bank account.
So the math for an active user ends up looking like: staking yield on your ETH collateral (≈3.5% APY) + 5%+ yield on USDC in the vault + 3% cashback on every purchase. Spend $10K annually and you earn roughly $300 in rewards plus yields — turning everyday errands into a passive income stream.
Every ether.fi Cash card comes with full Visa Signature protections regardless of tier. Personal ether.fi Cash credit card holders enjoy all the benefits of Visa Signature, including price protection ($2,000), purchase protection ($10,000), extended warranty ($10,000), auto rental insurance (global), Visa Digital Concierge, the Visa Luxury Hotel Collection, and Visa Airport Companion access.
This is the kind of stuff traditional credit cards charge $450/year for.
Ethereum Maxis who hold ETH and want to earn staking rewards, EigenLayer points, and cashback simultaneously — this is the only card that does it all. DeFi power users benefit from the ability to "spend without selling" in Borrow Mode, which is a tax-efficient approach for anyone with a significant portfolio.
It's probably not the right card if you're a complete crypto beginner — the DeFi-first interface and the collateral management in Borrow Mode have a learning curve. But if you're already comfortable with wallets and staking, the setup is a few minutes.
ether.fi runs an ongoing referral program with no limit on the number of people you can refer. During promotional campaigns, referral bonuses can temporarily increase to 10–15%. Regional caps apply — $60 per referral in the US and $40 in Europe.
The ether.fi Cash Card is live and accepting applications. It functions as a non-custodial Visa card, meaning you maintain control over your crypto, and can be used for purchases anywhere Visa is accepted. The card is also compatible with Apple Pay and Google Pay for convenient mobile payments.
Standard KYC verification is required for all tiers. Available in the US, UK, and EEA, with global availability expanding.
👉 Get your ether.fi Cash Card here
Most crypto cards make you choose between holding your assets and spending your assets. ether.fi Cash removes that tradeoff. Your ETH keeps compounding, your USDC keeps yielding, and every swipe adds more wETH to your stack.
The tiered structure rewards engagement without demanding upfront lock-ups, and the 3% base cashback across all public tiers is competitive with cards that require significant staking.
Zero annual fees. No minimums. Non-custodial. For anyone already deep in the Ethereum ecosystem, this is genuinely the most financially productive credit card on the market right now.
👉 Sign up with referral code and earn bonus rewards
Crypto products carry risk. In Borrow Mode, market volatility can affect your collateral ratio. Always understand the liquidation mechanics before using Borrow Mode.