Stablecoin issuer Tether will offer a gold-backed card in partnership with Fasset, according to a block post. The company claims this is a “world’s first” gold-backed neobank card.
Fasset, based in Dubai, is regulated by the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority and holds both a VASP and a broker-dealer license.
Founded in 2019, Fasset offers a “super-app,” an all-in-one financial services app for banking, crypto trading, etc.
The company reports over 2 million wallets from 125 different countries. It primarily targets users in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East.
Beyond its digital dollar and other stablecoins, Tether also offers Tether Gold (XAU₮), a digital asset offered by TG Commodities.
XAU₮ represents one troy fine ounce of gold on a London Good Delivery bar, so it is redeemable as physical gold.
Paolo Ardoino, CEO of Tether, says that in the past, gold was viewed more as a store of value and not a medium of exchange, but by leveraging their tech stack, they are connecting stablecoins and tokenized gold to a real-world payment system for global transactions.
Tether reports that the market cap of tokenized gold exceeds $5.3 billion, with XAU₮ accounting for a significant share at $2.6 billion.
The gold-backed card will operate on the Visa network and earn up to 6% back on certain transactions.
The partnership with Fasset means their users already have access to various banking services, trading, fast transfers, and a global debit card.
Tether claims to be the largest company in the digital asset ecosystem.