Wirex Review: Should You Use it?

Did you know that there were over 10,115 cryptocurrencies in May 2021—and that the value market of cryptocurrency is expected to be $1,758 million by 2027? This popular way of investing and spending is becoming a larger part of our lives every day.

If you’ve invested in cryptocurrency and want to use it in your daily life, then you’re probably interested in apps and cards that make it easier to do this. With this Wirex review, you can determine if this is the right app and card for you to use.

You might be asking yourself questions about Wirex, such as:

“How does Wirex work?”

“Can I trust Wirex if I use them?”

If you’re asking yourself all these questions, you might feel overwhelmed. How can you find the answers to these questions? You also might feel stressed out. You want to use your cryptocurrency in an easy way every day, but you can’t decide on the right card or app until you’ve done your research.

That’s why we’ve put together this Wirex card review. Once you have all the information you need, you can make an informed decision about whether Wirex is right for you.

How Does Wirex Work?

When looking at reviews for Wirex, you need to learn how Wirex works. Basically, Wirex works like any online bank account you set up on your phone and comes with a card that makes it easy for you to spend the currency you have in the account.

The big difference between Wirex and a traditional bank account is that, with Wirex, you can store cryptocurrencies in addition to other currencies. These include a total of ten cryptocurrencies, including Litecoin, Etherium, and Bitcoin.

If you have Bitcoin loans, this is the perfect place to store them.

The way Wirex works is simple. You apply for the debit card that comes with the account, and you’ll usually receive it within just a week. You’ll only have to pay £1 every month to have the card.

Once it’s been delivered to you, it will be connected to the Wirex bank account app (your “wallet”) on your phone.

To use the card, all you have to do is put your money into your wallet. You can do this with a credit card, debit card, or wire transfer. There’s no fee to transfer the money, and it happens immediately.

All the currencies you put in your wallet—including cryptocurrencies—are then changed into the local currency where you live.

Then, you put that money onto the card itself. Once you’ve done it, you can use the card anywhere that takes Visa cards.

There are some issues with this last step of moving the money from the account to the card, which has resulted in bad reviews from customers. We’ll review this later on in this Wirex crypto card review.

Promoted

USD Margin Lending

• Return rates optimized daily
• Secure, stable investment growth
• No minimum
• No lock-up period, withdraw anytime

Go to siteMore info

What are the Benefits of Wirex?

In reviews of Wirex, there are several benefits to using this card that are covered. The first benefit is that Wirex is easy to use. Because you can seamlessly spend, exchange, receive, and send both conventional and digital currencies, you can have all your money in one place.

This means that if you’ve invested in cryptocurrency and also have a job that pays you in traditional currency, you won’t have to be constantly transferring between one account and another. Instead, you can have everything in one place.

You’ll know exactly how much you have to spend, too.

They were also the first to launch a cryptocurrency-enabled Visa card. This shows just how important it is to Wirex to make using cryptocurrency a part of everyday life. Considering that Visa cards are accepted in over 200 territories and countries, Wirex really does simplify spending anywhere.

Additionally, the Wirex company is expanding. In 2020, they became the first cryptocurrency-friendly Mastercard principal member. They’re also planning to expand into over 40 markets in the future.

This shows that, if you have a Wirex card and account, you’ll have all the benefits of being part of a global, cryptocurrency-friendly financial institution.

Where Can You Get Wirex?

Currently, you can only get Wirex in the United Kingdom and Europe. However, they are planning to expand, as mentioned above, into 40 markets, including the US and Australia.

The good news, if you’re based in the UK or Europe, is that you can use it anywhere Visa is accepted. So, if you plan on traveling, you won't be limited when using your Wirex card.

Is Wirex a Crypto Card?

Even though you can store different types of currencies on your Wirex account, Wirex is designed with cryptocurrency users in mind. They pride themselves on the fact that users can use the card for both blockchain-powered and traditional payments, in addition to using it every day for payments.

The Power of the Multi-Currency Account

In many Wirex exchange reviews, you’ll find reviewers raving about the multi-currency nature of the card. If you’re currently working in multiple currencies, this can be a huge benefit. For example, if you run a company in the UK, and often receive payments in Euros, having a Wirex account makes it much easier to get paid.

This is better than using PayPal, for example, which charges you hefty fees for international business payments.

They also charge fees for transferring from one currency to another. With the Wirex account, these transferring fees are much lower.

The Wirex account makes it possible to use ten cryptocurrencies and twelve fiat currencies. You can use it in over 54 million locations worldwide, and it’s already available in 130 countries. This really is an international company.

Responsibility and Compliance

While there are some issues with the card that we’ll cover later in the ‘Concerns’ section of this article, Wirex does do their homework when it comes to getting the right licenses. In 2018, they got a UK-based e-money license. Currently, they are applying for licenses in Japan, Singapore, and the EEA.

The licenses and certifications Wirex has received include being supervised by the Bank of Lithuania, being a PCI Level 1 Service Provider, and being part of the Financial Conduct Authority.

The licenses and certifications they are currently applying for are with the Central Bank of Ireland and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

App and Card Use

The Wirex app isn’t as great as the one available for Revolut, but it’s still pretty user-friendly. Once you’ve transferred your money to the card, it isn’t too difficult to use. It’s easy to see everything on the Wirex app, such as your account information, your balances, and your transactions.

However, contactless payments aren’t possible. When these are used, you’re still required to use the chip-and-pin. Considering that contactless payments are preferred now because of the COVID-19 Pandemic, this is not only irritating but limiting.

Protection of Client Money

When it comes to the protection of client money, Wirex follows the Financial Conduct Authority’s regulations and rules. This is because they are regulated and authorized by the FCA.

The way Wirex’s protection of client money works is that they keep it in separate bank accounts. This means that it’s stored separately from the money Wirex themselves have stored. Client money is stored in ‘ring-fenced’ bank accounts.

This means that, if Wirex were ever to go bankrupt, clients would get their funds back. You don't have to worry about having your money tied up in a bankruptcy lawsuit.

The Security

Wirex also prioritizes security. Even though many cryptocurrency banks don’t do this, Wirex makes sure to go through many authorization processes when setting up your account. This is much more common with traditional banks.

While this might be annoying because it means you’ll have to wait longer for your account to be authorized, it’s better in the long run for your security.

However, because they are still applying for the same licenses as larger banks, we recommend you store only small amounts of money in your Wirex account.

Rewards Program

Wirex also has a rewards program, called Cryptoback. When you use your Wirex card in any store, they’ll give you up to 1.5% back to use. This is paid out in cryptocurrency. So far, Wirex has given out more than $1.5 million in this rewards program.

Drawbacks

There are some drawbacks to the Wirex card. One of these is that the card isn’t that useful for ATM withdrawals. This is because they charge £1.75 for any time you take out cash—and this fee is even higher if you aren’t in the country you’re based in.

Additionally, there have been reports of not being able to use ATMs at all with this debit card. This greatly reduces your ability to use the Wirex card on a daily basis, which is something they say is their priority.

Also, if you spend money in a different currency, you’ll be charged a 3% fee on the purchase you’re making. If you travel often, then this can be a problem. However, you can add the currency to your account for a small fee, so it isn’t an unfixable problem.

However, for each currency, you will have to have a different debit card.

Concerns in This Wirex Review

We also have some concerns about Wirex, which originate from Wirex users themselves. In many reviews of this online banking and cryptocurrency solution, there is negative feedback from users. Some have said that, after depositing their money, they were blocked from using the app. As a result, they lost access to their money.

Others have complained that, while it’s easy to put the money in the account, it’s difficult to get the money out again.

When they filed complaints with the company, they did not receive any responses from customer service.

Also, when they do get back to customers when their own money is no longer accessible to them, they say that they are completing an investigation of the situation. Then, the results of the investigation are never provided, and the user is still blocked.

Other times, users have been asked to go through the verification process again to get access to their money. However, the verification process does not go through, which means that users still can’t access their money.

Sometimes, Wirex went so far as to answer client concerns in another language, so that they would not be able to deal with this problem. They make client communication difficult as well by having different team members answer each query.

Some users are not even able to log in their account in the first place.

Additionally, Wirex has been accused of monitoring these bad reviews so that potential customers will decide to use their service. For this reason, you should be cautious when thinking about getting a Wirex card and account.

Compare with Wirex alternatives

Similar Debit Cards

Need More Information?

Now that you’ve read this Wirex review, do you need more information? Do you want to learn more about how to set up a Wirex account? Do you want to learn about other crypto-friendly banks and need help choosing the right one for you?

Whatever you need, we’re here to help. At Bitcompare, we’re experts when it comes to all your cryptocurrency needs. We review everything related to cryptocurrencies, including loans, cards, exchanges, platforms, and more. To learn more about how we can help you, contact us here.