Self-custody meets KYC: Tangem launches Visa payments with Paera
06.11.2025
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Tangem Pay enables users to spend Circle's USDC stablecoin worldwide through a virtual Visa card that connects directly to Tangem's self-custodial hardware wallet.
Tangem just dropped Tangem Pay — a virtual Visa card that connects directly to their hardware wallet, letting you spend stablecoins at millions of merchants worldwide. This collab with US payment infrastructure company Paera means you can deposit and spend Circle's USDC stablecoin on the Polygon network.
“Once the user deposits into their Tangem Pay account, they can spend anywhere Visa is accepted, regardless of the local currency. The solution supports Apple Pay and Google Pay for instant Visa payments.” — Marcos Nunes, Tangem Pay CEO
Launch timeline: Cards start rolling out in late November across the US, Latin America, and major Asia-Pacific countries. Europe gets it in 2026.
Initial availability in 42 countries
Tangem Pay launches in 42 jurisdictions including Australia, Brazil, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, and the US. Nunes says: “The virtual card is just the beginning — we're already working on adding new countries and incentives to make this our users' number one card for daily spending.”
This aligns with Tangem's full self-custody vision: store, grow, and spend.
Self-custody payments meet KYC
Here's the twist: While Tangem's hardware wallet embodies the 'be-your-own-bank' self-custody principle (no third parties, typically no KYC), the Tangem Pay account requires KYC. But Tangem claims zero access to user data.
“Tangem has no access to user data. If a user undergoes KYC, it only applies to their Tangem Pay balance. If a user is sanctioned or engaged in illegal activity our regulatory partner — not Tangem — can disconnect the payment card from the payment network. Again, no one has access to the Tangem wallet itself, and Tangem Pay's KYC has no effect on this.” — Marcos Nunes
Compliance and settlement are handled by Rain, a stablecoin payment infrastructure that just announced plans to join Western Union's forthcoming Solana-based Digital Asset Network (expected H1 2026).
#banking services in crypto#crypto wallets#payment cards#stablecoins#cold wallet
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