Cryptocurrency pockets firm Tangem has launched Tangem Pay, a digital Visa card connecting on to the {hardware} pockets and permitting customers to spend stablecoins at hundreds of thousands of retailers worldwide.
Launched in collaboration with US cost infrastructure firm Paera, Tangem Pay allows customers to deposit and spend Circle’s USDC 
USDCUSD stablecoin on the Polygon community, Tangem stated in an announcement shared with Cointelegraph on Wednesday.
“As soon as the consumer deposits into their Tangem Pay account, they’ll spend wherever Visa is accepted, whatever the native foreign money,” Tangem Pay CEO Marcos Nunes stated, including that the answer helps Apple Pay and Google Pay for fast Visa payments.
Tangem Pay will begin issuing the playing cards in late November throughout the USA, Latin America and main Asia-Pacific international locations, adopted by a European launch in 2026.
Preliminary availability in 42 international locations
The preliminary rollout of Tangem Pay options availability to customers in 42 jurisdictions, together with Australia, Brazil, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore and the US.
“The digital card is just the start — we’re already engaged on including new international locations and incentives to make this our customers’ primary card for his or her every day spending,” Nunes stated.
The launch of Tangem Pay aligns with Tangem’s objective to ship a full self-custody expertise, which the corporate sees as “retailer, develop and spend.”
Self-custody payments meet KYC
In contrast to custodial wallets, self-custodial options enable customers to retailer crypto with out counting on third events, usually bypassing Know Your Buyer (KYC) procedures.
Though Tangem’s {hardware} pockets embodies the “be-your-own-bank” precept of self-custody by offering a chilly pockets, the Tangem Pay account stays topic to KYC necessities.
“Tangem has no entry to consumer information. If a consumer undergoes KYC, it solely applies to their Tangem Pay stability,” the Tangem Pay CEO stated, including:
“If a consumer is sanctioned or engaged in criminality our regulatory accomplice — not Tangem — can disconnect the cost card from the cost community. Once more, nobody has entry to the Tangem pockets itself, and Tangem Pay’s KYC has no impact on this.”
The compliance and settlement parts of the Tangem Pay are dealt with by Rain, a stablecoin cost infrastructure that introduced plans on Tuesday to take part within the forthcoming stablecoin-based settlement system by the worldwide cost big Western Union.
Formally introduced in late October, Western Union’s Solana-based Digital Asset Community will characteristic the corporate’s proprietary stablecoin and is predicted to launch within the first half of 2026.
